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CALIFORNIA 

SAN  DIEGO 


THE  FIRE  TRAP  AT  THE  STONE  BRIDGE. 


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THE 

JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

A  THRIVING  CITY  OF  30,000  INHABITANTS  AND  MANY  GREAT  IN- 

DUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENTS  NEARLY  WIPED  FROM  EARTH. 

MANY  THOUSANDS  DROWNED  OR  BURNED  TO  DEATH. 

Property  Worth  Many  Millions  of  Dollars  Destroyed. 

AN  AVALACHE  OF  WATER  SWEEPS  DOWN  THE  CONEMAUGH  VALLEY 

DESTROYING    EVERYTHING    IN    ITS  DESCENT.      A  BLOCKADE  OF 

WRECKS  OF  HOUSES,  TIMBER,  Etc.,  AT  THE  RAILROAD  BRIDGE. 

MIRACULOUS  ESCAPES    AND  RESCUES;    WHOLE    FAMILIES 

ANNIHILATED       THE    WONDERFUL    BENEVOLENCE    OF 

THE  AMERICAN  PEOPLE.      RELIEF  ORGANIZATIONS 

EVERYWHERE.      MONEY,   FOOD,  CLOTHING  AND 

FURNITURE    LAVISHLY    CONTRIBUTED. 

GENERAL  HASTINGS  IN  COMMAND  IN  JOHNSTOWN. 

Ti10  niwwp  Narrative  is  eatliered  from  the  accounts  of  Correspondents,  Eye- 

^fueesl  rom  the  u  .fortunate  district  and  other  sources,  and  is  a 
£    narrative  of  this  terrible  catastrophe. 


BY 

HERMAN  DIKCK,  A.  M. 


PREFACE. 

THE  disaster  at  the  Valley  of  the  Conemaugh  is  so  far 
beyond  all  experience,  that  it  is  difficult  for  the  mind  to 
grasp  it.  Johnstown,  which  was  really  an  aggregation  of 
seven  or  eight  towns,  with  a  population  of  25,000  to 
30,000  souls  lay  in  a  deep  valley  at  the  junction  of  the 
Conemaugh  and  Stony  Creek.  Early  on  Friday,  the 
3 1st  day  of  May,  a  freshet  in  the  latter  stream  broke 
away  the  boom  above  the  town  and  swept  down  the 
mass  of  logs  against  the  inundated  houses.  This  was 
followed  in  the  afternoon  by  a  far  worse  disaster,  when 
the  dam  of  the  South  Fork  Lake  broke  and  the  mass  of 
water  swept  down  the  valley,  carrying  everything  before 
it.  The  logs  and  the  wreckage  piling  against  the  bridge 
formed  a  partial  dam,  that  raised  the  water  still  higher, 
and  in  a  short  time  the  whole  town  was  submerged. 
Hundreds  were  drowned  in  their  houses ;  others  were 
swept  along  by  the  torrent  and  perished  either  by  water 
or  by  fire  among  the  debris.  This  terrible  calamity 
filled  the  hearts  of  every  citizen  with  grief  and  horror, 
and  from  all  parts  the  globe  are  being  sent  contributions 
in  money  and  goods  of  all  kinds  for  the  sufferers. 

Our  book  will  give  to  the  reader  a  true  and  interest- 
ing narrative  of  this  terrible  calamity  gathered  from  the 
best  of  sources,  and  is  richly  illustrated,  the  views  being 
taken  on  the  spot  by  the  specjal  artists  of  the  publishers. 

(3) 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Introductory  Remarks.     A  Similar  Catastrophe  never  before  Occur- 
red in  the  United  States.     The  Cause  of  the  Calamity.     The  1 
of    Conemaugh   Lake.     The   Largest  Reservoir  of  the  World. 
Construction   of  the  Unsafe  Dam.     Ignorance  or  Carelessness 
shown  in  the  Construction.     Location  of  Johnstown, 
trial  Importance.     The  Lower  Towns. 

CHAPTER  II. 

Difficulties  Surmounted  by  Correspondents  in  Obtaining  Intelligent 
Information  about  the  Disaster.  The  First  Reports  were  not 
Exaggerated.  The  Facts  bear  them  out,  and  are  Even  Worse. 
Another  Account  of  the  Dam  that  Broke.  The  Watchman's 
Views. 

CHAPTER  III. 

A  Graphic  Description  of  the  Valley  of  Death,  by  a  Reporter  who 
was  among  the  First  to  Enter  Johnstown  after  the  Catastrophe. 
Death  Everywhere.  A  Charnel  House  Twenty  Miles  Long. 
Sixty  Acres 'of  Burning  Debris.  The  Loss  of  Life  and  Pro- 
perty. What  a  Reporter  of  the  Public  Ledger  saw.  The 
Horror  of  Fire  added  to  that  of  Water.  Bodies  along  the  River 
Banks.  Heartrending  Scenes.  Ruffianism.  Scenes  on 
Stony  Bridge.  In  Johnstown.  The  Loss  of  Life. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Impossibility  of  Obtaining  a  Fair  Report  of  the  Actual  Losses. 
A  Visit  to  the  Dam  that  did  it.  The  Water  Gates  Permanently 
Closed  It  was  Built  of  Dirt  and  Rubble. 

(5) 


6  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 

The  Break  of  the  Dam.  A  Spoiled  Sensation.  Paul  Revere  non 
est,  but  many  other  Cases  of  Heroism.  A  Graphic  Description 
of  the  Disaster.  Railroad  Employees  Escape  on  a  Locomotive. 
The  Masses  of  Water  Arrive  at  Johnstown.  Terrible  Destruc- 
tion. A  Once  Prosperous  City  now  Nearly  Ruined.  Johnstown 
Before  and  After  the  Disaster. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Gorge  at  the  Bridge.  Description  of  an  Eye  Witness.  Un- 
heeded Warnings.  Breaking  of  the  Boom.  Roasted  to  Death. 
Heroism  and  Self-sacrifice.  Her  Last  Message.  A  Boy's 
Experience.  Miraculous  Escape.  Refused  to  Desert  Her 
Children. 

CHAPTER   VII. 

Remarkable  Stories  of  Escape.  A  Mother's  Efforts  to  Save  Her 
Children.  A  Terrible  Visitation.  A  Thrilling  Narrative  of  the 
Flood.  Race  between  Engine  and  Flood. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Destruction  and  Death  Everywhere.  The  Day  Express  Disaster. 
The  Pennsylvania  Railroad's  Last  Train. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

After  the  Flood.  A  Proclamation  by  the  Governor  of  Pennsylva- 
nia. Conservative  Estimate  of  the  Losses.  An  Appeal  for  Aid. 
The  Situation  of  the  Conemaugh  Valley.  What  Followed  the 
Break  of  the  Dam. 

CHAPTER  X. 

Relief  for  the  Afflicted  from  all  Parts  of  the  Globe.  Unprecedented 
Calamity  and  Grand  Charity.  Arrival  of  Relief  Trains.  Great 
Energy  Shown  by  the  Sufferers. 


CONTENTS.  7 

CHAPTER  XL 

The  Orphans  of  the  Flood  will  be  cared  for.  At  the  Relief  Sta- 
tion. The  Grand  Army  in  charge  of  the  Work  of  Receiving  and 
Dispensing  Supplies. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Johnstown  People  Crazed  by  their  Sufferings.  Governor  Beaver 
of  Pennsylvania  Visits  Johnstown.  General  Hastings  in  Com- 
mand. Districting  the  Ruined  Area.  Several  Stores  Opened. 
Latest  Estimate  of  Loss  of  Life.  Passengers  Lost  from  the  Day 
Express. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

A  New  Ray  of  Hope.  Rehabilitation.  Merchants  to  get  long 
Credit.  Report  of  the  Transportation  Bureau.  A  Generous 
Offer  made  by  Philadelphia  Bankers.  The  Relief  Committee. 

CHAPTER  XIV 

Inundations  and  Destruction  01  Life  and  Property  in  other  parts  ot 
Pennsylvania.  The  Bald  Eagle  Valley  in  Centre  County. 
Muncy.  The  Juniata  and  the  Susquehanna  Valley.  Lock 
Haven.  Newport.  Harrisburg.  Renovo.  Columbia.  McKean 
County.  Sunbury.  Bedford. 

CHAPTER   XV. 

The  Flood  at  Williamsport.  Loss  of  Life  and  Property.  Thirty 
Persons  Drowned.  Damages  to  Buildings  and  Contents.  Mil- 
lions of  feet  of  Lumber  Carried  Away.  Sufferings  Among  the 
People,  whose  Houses  were  Destroyed  by  the  Hood.  The 
Bell's  Gap  Road.  Huntingdon  County.  300  Houses  Destroyedr 
In  the  Cumberland  Valley.  Tyrone. 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Disasters  and  Floods  Everywhere.  Cumberland.  Harper's  Ferry. 
Point  of  Rocks  Inundated,  The  Potomac  Floods.  At  Washing- 
ton, D.  C.  Frederick  and  Port  Deposit,  Md.  Lancaster  and 
Shamokin,  Pa.  Richmond,  Va.  Etc. 


8  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

The  Countless  Benevolence  of  the  American  People.  The  Clouds 
are  Passing  Away.  P'rom  5000  to  7000  People  Perished  during 
this  Calamity.  A  Retrospect.  The  Reporters  and  the  Tele- 
graph Operators. 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Back  to  the  Fated  Valley.  Up  at  the  Mighty  Dam.  Homes 
Once  More.  The  Epidemic.  The  Commission  at  Hand. 
A  Bank  Open.  Another  Sabbath.  The  Red  Cross  Relief. 

CHAPTER  XVIV. 

Floods  of  History.  In  Holland  and  •China.  How  France 
has  Suffered. 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 


CHAPTER  I. 

NOTHING  in  the  history  of  the  United  States  in  time 
of  peace  has  ever  approached  the  appalling  catastrophe, 
which  has  spread  such  awful  havoc  through  the  thriving 
valley  of  the  Conemaugh  on  the  afternoon  of  Friday  the 
3ist  day  of  May,  1889,  and  has  left  such  terrible  horror 
and  devastation.  It  only  can  be  compared  to  the 
terrible  devastation  and  loss  of  life  caused  by  the  earth- 
quake at  Lisbon  or  the  breaking  of  the  dam  of  the 
Yellow  River  (Ho-ang-Ho)  in  China  and  the  returning 
of  its  waters  to  its  old  bed,  then  one  of  the  richest 
districts  of  that  rich  part  of  China.  Before  this  terrible 
catastrophe  the  valley  of  the  Conemaugh  was  perhaps 
one  of  the  happiest  in  the  great  State  of  Pennsylvania. 

THE    CAUSE   OF   THE    CALAMITY. 

The  cause  of  the  fearful  calamity  was  the  breaking  of 
the  resevoir  or  dam,  known  as  Conemaugh  Lake,  a  body 
of  water  about  three  and  a  half  miles  long,  one  and  a 
quarter  miles  in  width,  and  in  some  places  100  feet  in 
depth.  It  was  located  on  the  mountain  some  three  or 
four  hundred  feet  above  the  level  of  Johnstown,  and  was 
of  course  a  constant  menace  to  that  town,  as  it  was  said 
to  hold  more  water  than  any  reservoir  in  the  United 
States  It  is  thr  property  of  a  number  of  wealthy  gentle- 

(25) 


26  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

men  of  Pittsburg,  members  of  the  South  Fork  Hunting 
And  Fishing  Club,  and  was  given  its  late  immense  pro- 
portions in  order  to  fit  it  for  hunting  and  fishing  pur- 
poses. 

It  appears  that  every  possible  precaution  had  been  reg- 
ularly taken  to  insure  the  safety  of  the  reservoir,  an 
inspection  of  it  being  made  by  a  Pennsylvania  railroad 
engineer  once  a  month,  these  examinations  showing  that 
nothing  less  than  some  extraordinary  convulsion  ot 
nature  could  destroy  the  barrier  that  held  the  great  body 
of  water  within  its  prescribed  bounds.  We  are  con- 
fronted with  the  appalling  fact  that  the  waters  were  too 
strong  for  the  barrier,  and  that  tearing  it  away  they 
swept  down  with  relentless  and  resistless  fury  upon  the 
town  below,  carrying  death  and  destruction  with  them 
to  an  unparalleled  extent. 

THE  LARGEST  RESERVOIR  IN  THE  WORLD. 

In  order  to  understand  the  nature  of  this  calamity  it  is 
necessary  to  describe  the  respective  locations  of  the 
reservoir  at  Johnstown.  The  reservoir  lies  about  12 
and  a  half  miles  northeast  of  Johnstown,  and  is  the  site 
of  the  old  reservoir,  which  was  one  of  the  feeders  of  the 
Pennsylvania  canal.  It  is  the  property  of  a  number  of 
wealthy  gentlemen  in  Pittsburg,  who  formed  themselves 
into  the  corporation,  the  title  of  which  is  the  South  Fork 
Fishing  And  Hunting  Club. 

This  sheet  of  water  was  formerly  known  as  Cone- 
maugh  Lake.  It  is  from  300  to  400  feet  above  the  level 
of  Johnstown,  being  in  the  mountains.  It  is  about  three 
and  a  half  miles  long  and  from  a  mile  to  one  and  a  quarter 
miles  in  width,  andjn  some  places  it  is  100  feet  in  depth. 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

It  holds  more  water  than  any  other  reservoir,  natural  or 
artificial,  in  the  United  States.  The  lake  has  been  quad- 
rupled in  size  by  artificial  means  and  was  held  in  check 
by  a  dam  from  700  to  1,000  feet  wide. 

It  is  90  feet  in  thickness  at  the  base  and  the  height  is 
1 10  feet.  The  top  has  a  breadth  of  over  20  feet.  Recog- 
nizing the  menace  which  the  lake  has  to  the  region 
below,  the  South  Fork  Club  had  the  dam  inspected  once 
a  month  by  the  Pennsylvania  railroad  engineers,  and 
their  investigation  showed  that  nothing  less  than  some 
convulsion  of  nature  would  tear  the  barrier  away  and 
loosen  the  weapon  of  death.  The  steady  rain  of  the  past 
forty- eight  hours  increased  the  volume  of  water  in  all 
the  small  mountain  streams,  which  were  already  swelled 
by  the  lesser  rains  earlier  in  the  week. 

THE  UNSAFE  CONDITION  OF  THE  DAM. 

Engineering  experts  have  fairly  swarmed  to  this  local- 
ity to  examine  the  broken  dam  and  the  conditions  which 
produced  the  catastrophe  and  conduced  to  making  it 
such  a  gigantic,  appalling  calamity. 

Among  them  were  A.  M.  Wellington  and  L.  P.  Burt, 
of  the  New  York  Engineering  News. 

A  reporter  has  had  a  long  talk  with  these  latter 
gentlemen,  and  from  them  has  received  a  full  description 
of  the  dam,  its  faults  of  construction  and  the  probable 
reason  for  the  breaking  away  of  the  waters  of  Cone- 
maugh  Lake. 

The  reports  rendered  by  these  experts  substantially 
confirm  The  Evening  World's  dispatches  regarding  the 
insecurity  of  the  dam  structure. 

Says  Mr.  Wellington :  "  No  engineer  of  known  and 


28  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

good  standing  could  possibly  have  been  engaged  in  the 
reconstruction  of  the  old  dam  after  it  had  been  neglected 
in  disuse  for  twenty  odd  years,  and  the  old  dam  was  a 
very  inferior  piece  of  work,  and  of  a  kind  wholly  unwar- 
ranted by  good  engineering  practices  of  its  day,  thirty 
years  ago. 

"  Both  the  original  dam  and  the  reconstructed  one 
were  built  of  earth  only,  with  no  heart  wall  and  rip-rap- 
ped only,  on  the  slopes.  True,  the  earth  is  of  a  sticky, 
clayey  quality;  the  best  of  earth  for  adhesiveness,  and 
the  old  dam  was  made  in  watered  layers,  well  rammed 
down,  as  is  still  shown  in  the  wrecked  dam.  But  the 
new  end  was  probably  not  rammed  down  at  all ;  the 
earth  was  simply  dumped  in  like  an  ordinary  railway 
filling.  Much  of  the  old  dam  still  stands,  while  the  new 
work  contiguous  to  it  was  carried  away. 

"  It  has  been  an  ackpowledged  principle  of  dam 
building  for  forty  years,  and  the  invariable  practice  to 
build  a  central  wall  either  of  puddle  or  solid  masonry, 
but  there  was  neither  in  the  old  nor  in  the  new  dam.  It 
is  doubtful  if  there  is  another  dam  of  the  height  of  fifty 
feet  in  the  United  States  which  tacks  this  central  wall. 

"  Ignorance  or  carelessness  is  shown  in  the  recon- 
struction, for  the  middle  of  the  ne^  dam  was  nearly  two 
feet  lower  in  the  middle  than  at  the  ends.  It  should 
have  been  crowned  in  the  middle  by  ^U  the  rules  and 
practise  of  engineering. 

"  Had  the  break  begun  at  the  ends,  the  cut  of  the 
water  would  have  been  gradual  and  little  or  no  harm 
would  have  resulted.  And  had  the  dan*  been  cut  at 
once  at  the  ends  when  the  water  began  running  over  the 
centre,  the  suddenness  of  the  break  mighf  )vw< 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  29 

checked,  the  wall  crumbling  away  at  least  more  slowly 
and  gradually  and  possibly  prolonged  so  that  little  harm 
would  have  been  done. 

"  There  was  an  overflow  through  the  rocks  in  the  old 
dam,  which,  provided  that  the  water  must  rise  seven 
feet  above  the  ordinary  level  before  it  would  pass  over 
the  crest  of  the  dam.  But,  owing  to  the  raising  of  the 
ends  of  the  dam  in  1881,  without  raising  the  crest,  only 
five  and  a  half  feet  of  water  was  necessary  to  run  water 
over  the  middle  of  the  dam.  And  this  spillway,  narrow 
at  best,  had  been  further  contracted  by  a  close  grating 
to  prevent  the  fish  from  escaping  from  the  lake,  while 
the  original  discharge  pipe  at  the  foot  of  the  dam  was 
permanantly  closed  when  the  dam  was  constructed. 
Indeed,  the  maximum  discharge  was  reduced  in  all 
directions.  The  safety  valve  to  that  dangerous  dam  was 
almost  screwed  down  tight. 

"  There  seems  to  have  been  no  leakage  through  the 
dam,  its  destruction  resulting  from  its  running  over  at 
the  top.  The  estimates  for  the  original  dam  call  for  half 
earth  and  rock,  but  there  is  no  indication  of  it  in  the 
broken  dam.  The  riprap  was  merely  a  skin  on  each 
face,  with  loose  spawls  mixed  with  the  earth.  The  dam 
was  72  feet  high,  2  inches  slope  to  a  foot  inside,  i1/? 
inches  to  a  foot  outside  slope  and  20  feet  thick  at  the 
top.  The  fact  that  the  dam  was  a  reconstructed  one, 
after  twenty  years  disuse,  made  it  especially  hard  on  the 
old  dam  to  withstand  the  pressure  of  the  water." 

Cyrus  Elder,  general  counsel  for  the  Cambria  Iron 
Company,  related  some  curious  incidents  as  indictive  of 
the  distrust  of  the  dam  on  all  sides. 

Mr.  Elder  is  the  father  of  George  Elder,  the  engineer 


30  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

of  the  Cyclone  Pulverizer  Company  of  New  York,  and 
lost  his  wife  and  only  daughter  in  the  flood. 

"  When  the  South  Fork  Fishing  And  Hunting  Club, 
of  Pittsburg,  leased  the  lake  of  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road Company,  in  1881,  and  proposed  to  rebuild  the  old 
dam,"  says  Mr.  Elder,  "the  Cambria  Iron  Company 
was  considerably  exercised,  and  a  competent  engineer 
was  employed  to  inspect  the  old  dam  and  the  plans  for 
the  reconstruction.  He  condemned  several  matters  in 
the  way  of  construction  and  the  plans  were  changed  to 
meet  his  views,  whereupon  he  reported  that  the  new 
dam  would  be  perfectly  safe. 

"  My  son,  George  R.  Elder,  was  at  the  Troy  Polytech- 
nic Institute  at  the  time,  and  he  sent  to  me  a  copy  of  a 
problem  submitted  to  his  class  by  the  Professor.  It  was, 
of  course,  an  hypothetical  case,  but  it  was  quite  evidently 
based  on  the  plans  and  specifications  for  the  South  Fork 
dam.  The  class  decided  that  the  dam  was  safe. 

"  But  the  President  of  my  Company  was  still  anxious, 
and,  thinking  that  it  would  be  a  good  idea  to  have  some 
member  of  the  Company  inside  the  South  Fork  Fishing 
Club,  set  aside  funds  of  the  Company  for  the  pur- 
chase of  tvVo  shares  in  the  Club.  They  were  in  the 
name  of  D.  J.  Morrell,  and  after  his  death  were  trans- 
ferred to  my  name.  They  are  still  held  by  me,  but  are 
the  property  of  the  Cambria  Iron  Company." 

THE  CORONER'S  JURY  BLAMES  THE  CLUB. 

Those  who  have  always  stood  as  members  of  the 
Club  now  declare  that  it  is  a  thing  of  the  past  and  no 
one  will  admit  his  membership. 

Even  the  owners  of  cottages  on  the  banks  of  the  lit- 


.  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  31 

tie  lake  deny  any  interest  in  the  Club.  They  are  wait- 
ing legal  action  which  will  probably  be  taken  against 
them,  and  the  cottages  are  unoccupied. 

Coroner  Hammer,  of  Westmoreland  County,  sitting 
in  inquest  upon  the  bodies  found  at  Nineveh,  took  the 
jury  to  the  dam,  and  a  verdict  is  being  prepared  for 
the  signatures  of  the  jurymen,  and  it  will  throw  the  bur- 
den of  blame  upon  the  South  Fork  Fishing  And  Hunting 

Club. 

It  throws  the  blame  on  the  Club  because  of  the 
"  gross,  if  not  criminal,  negligence  and  carelessness  in 
making  repairs  from  time  to  time." 

It  has  been  a  question  before  the  Coroner  if  the  Penn- 
sylvania Railroad  Company  should  not  be  held  jointly 
responsible  with  the  Club,  for  the  Company  leased  and 
abandoned  the  dam  and  permitted  it  to  fall  out  of  repair. 

THE  LOCATION  OF  JOHNSTOWN. 

Johnstown's  geographical  situation  is  one  that  renders 
it  peculiarly  liable  to  terrible  loss  of  life  in  the  event  of 
such  a  casualty  as  that  reported.  It  is  a  town- 
built  in  a  basin  of  the  mountains  and  girt  about  by 
streams,  all  of  which  finally  find  their  way  into  the  Alle- 
gheny river,  and  thence  into  the  Ohio.  On  one  side  of 
the  town  flows  the  Conemaugh  river,  a  stream  which 
during  the  dry  periods  of  the  summer  drought  can  be 
readily  crossed  in  many  places  by  stepping  from  stone  to 
stone,  but  which  speedily  becomes  a  raging  mountain 
torrent,  when  swollen  by  the  spring  freshets  or  heavy 
summer  rains. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  town  is  the  Stony  creek, 
which  gathers  up  its  own  share  of  the  mountain  rains 
and  whirls  them  along  toward  Pittsburg.  The  awful 


32  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

flood  caused  by  the  sudden  outpouring  of  the  contents 
of  the  reservoir,  together  with  the  torrents  of  rain  that 
had  already  swollen  these  streams  to  triple  their  usual 
violence,  is  supposed  to  be  the  cause  of  the  sudden  sub- 
mersion of  Johnstown  and  the  drowning  of  so  many  of 
its  citizens.  The  water,  unable  to  find  its  way  rapidly 
enough  through  its  usual  channels,  piled  up  in  over- 
whelming masses,  carrying  before  it  everything  that 
obstructed  its  onward  rush  upon  the  town. 

Johnstown  had  a  national  bank,  several  savings  insti- 
tutions, printing  offices  which  issue  several  daily  and 
weekly  papers,  sixteen  churches,  several  tanneries,  flour, 
planing  and  woolen  mills.  The  manufacture  of  wire, 
cement,  fire-brick  and  leather  is  also  carried  on.  The 
town  also  had  a  convent  and  an  academy. 

ITS    INDUSTRIAL    IMPORTANCE. 

Johnstown,  the  centre  of  the  great  disaster,  is  on  the 
main  line  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  276  miles  from 
Philadelphia  and  78  from  Pittsburg.  It  is  the  head- 
quarters of  the  great  Cambria  Iron  Company,  and  its 
acres  of  iron  works  fill  the  narrow  basin  in  which  the 
city  is  situated.  The  rolling  mill  and  Bessemer  steel 
works  employ  6,000  men.  The  mountains  rise  quite 
abruptly  almost  on  all  sides,  and  the  railroad  track, 
which  follows  the  turbulent  course  of  the  Coner>augh 
river,  is  above  the  level  of  the  iron  works,  which  must 
have  been  inundated  by  the  flood.  The  summit  of  the 
Allegheny  mountains  is  reached  at  Gallitizin,  about  24 
miles  east  of  Johnstown. 

The  people  of  Johnstown  had  been  warned  of  the  im- 
pending flood  as  early  as  I  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  but 
not  a  person  living  near  the  reservoir  knew  that  the  dam 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  33 

had  given  way  until  the  flood  swept  the  houses  off  their 
foundations  and  tore  the  timbers  apart.  Escape  from 
the  torrent  was  impossible.  The  Pennsylvania  Railroad 
hastily  made  up  trains  to  get  as  many  people  away  as 
possible,  and  thus  saved  many  lives. 

THE  LOWER  TOWNS. 

Four  miles  below  the  dam  lay  the  town  of  South 
Fork,  where  the  South  Fork  itself  empties  into  the  Con- 
emaugh  river.  The  town  continued  about  2,000  inhab- 
itants. It  has  not  been  heard  from,  but  it  is  said  that 
four-fifths  of  it  has  been  swept  away. 

Four  miles  further  down,  on  the  Conemaugh  river, 
which  runs  parallel  with  the  main  line  of  the  Pennsylva- 
vania  railroad,  was  the  town  of  Mineral  Point.  It  had 
800  inhabitants,  90  per  cent,  of  the  houses  being  on  a 
flat  and  close  to  the  river.  It  seems  impossible  to  hope 
that  any  of  them  have  escaped. 

Six  miles  further  down  was  the  town  of  Conemaugh, 
and  here  alone  was  there  a  topographical  possibility  of 
the  spreading  of  the  flood  and  the  breaking  of  its  force. 
It  contained  2,500  inhabitants  and  must  be  almost 
wholly  devastated. 

Woodvale,  with  2,000  people,  lay  a  mile  below  Cone- 
maugh, in  the  flat,  and  one  mile  further  down  were 
Johnstown  and  its  cluster  of  sister  towns,  Cambria  City, 
Co*-'  jmaugh  borough,  with  a  total  population  of  30,000. 

On  made  ground,  and  stretching  along  right  at  the 
river  verge,  were  the  immense  iron  works  of  the  Cam- 
bria Iron  And  Steel  Company,  who  have  $5,000,000 
invested  in  their  plant. 

Besides    this    there  are  many  other  large  industrial 
establishments  on  the  bank  of  the  river. 
3 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  correspondents,  who  were  dispatched  to  the  Con- 
emaugh  Valley,  as  soon  as  the  news  of  the  terrible  dis- 
aster horrified  the  public,  found  it  impossible  to  gather 
a  clear  and  intelligible  description  of  the  catastrophe 
from  eye  witneses.  They  all  agree,  that  they  heard  a 
terrible  crashing  sound  and  then  all  of  a  sudden  they  saw 
a  wall  of  water  seventy  feet  high  rushing  with  lightning 
speed  down  the  valley,  destroying  everything  in  its  trail. 

The  great  damage  to  Johnstown  was  largely  due  to 
the  rebound  of  the  flood  after  it  swept  across.  The  wave 
spread  against  the  stream  of  Stony  creek  and  passed 
over  Kernsville  to  a  depth  of  30  feet  in  some  places.  It 
was  related  that  the  lumber  boom  had  broken  on 
Stony  creek,  and  the  rush  of  tide  down  stream,  coming 
in  contact  with  the  spreading  wave,  increased  the  extent 
of  the  disaster  in  this  section.  In  Kernsville,  as  well  as 
in  Hornerstown  across  the  river,  the  opinion  was  expres- 
sed that  so  many  lives  would  not  have  been  lost  had  the 
people  not  believed  from  there  experience  with  former 
floods  that  there  was  postively  no  danger  beyond  the 
filling  of  cellars  or  the  overflow  of  the  shores  of  the 
river.  After  rushing  down  the  mountains  from  the  South 
Fork  dam,  the  pressure  of  water  was  so  great  that  it 
forced  its  way  against  the  natural  channel  not  only  over 
Kernsville  and  Hornerstown,  but  all  the  way  up  to 
Grubbtown,  on  Stony  creek. 

By  the  terrible  flood  the  communications  by  rail  and 
wire  were  nearly  all  cut  off  and  many  citizens,  who  on 
(34) 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  35 

Saturday,  June  ist.  read  about  the  terrible  disaster  first 
believed,  that  the  reports  about  the  destruction  of  life 
and  property  were  greatly  exaggerated  either  through 
the  excitement  bordering  on  insanity,  engendered  by 
this  appalling  calamity,  or  by  the  desire  to  be  sensa- 
tional, a  thing,  which  we  often  find  in  newspaper 
reports.  In  this  case  though  there  was  not  the  least 
exaggeration ;  on  the  contrary,  the  facts,  substantiated 
later  on  by  responsible  men,  and  by  the  different  aid 
committees,  sent  there  by  charitable  and  benevolent 
organizations  from  neighboring  cities,  fully  justified  these 
reports,  and  in  most  cases  were  much  more  distressing 
and  appalling  than  according  to  the  first  reports.  The 
first  reports  gave  the  number  of  lives  lost  at  10,000  to  12,- 
oco,  and  if  all  the  missing  are  supposed  to  be  dead  this 
number  will  be  correct,  although  it  can  fairly  be  assumed 
that  many  of  the  people  saved,  in  their  consternation 
and  fright,  which  bordered  on  the  unsettling  of  their  rea- 
son, have  strayed  away  and  will  turn  up  at  some  other 
place.  The  exact  number  of  the  victims  of  this  dread- 
ful disaster  probably  will  never  be  known.  Bodies  have 
been  found  beyond  Pittsburg,  which  in  all  probability 
were  carried  to  that  place  from  Johnstown  and  its 
suburbs.  The  terrible  holocaust  at  the  barricade  of 
wrecks  at  the  bridge  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  below 
Johnstown,  where  hundreds  of  men,  women  and  chil- 
dren, who  were  saved  from  the  waves  were  burned  to 
death,  caused  a  terrible  loss  of  life.  The  loss  of  property 
was  first  guessed  at  25  to  30  millions  of  dollars,  to-day 
it  is  estimated  at  double  of  that  amount. 

ANOTHER   ACCOUNT    OF    THE    DAM    THAT  BROKE. 

On  the  Monday  after  the  catastrophe  there  came  to 


36  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

Johnstown  a  man,  who  had  scarcely  more  than  a  dozen 
rags  to  cover  his  nakedness.  His  name  is  Herbert 
Webber,  and  he  was  employed  by  the  South  Fork  Club 
as  a  sort  of  guard.  He  supported  himself  mostly  by 
hunting  and  fishing  on  the  Club's  preserves.  By  almost 
superhuman  efforts  he  succeeded  in  working  his  way 
through  the  forest  and  across  flood,  in  order  to  ascertain 
for  himself  the  terrible  results  of  the  deluge  which  he  saw 
start  from  the  Sportsman's  Club's  lake.  Webber  said  that 
he  had  been  employed  in  various  capacities  about  the 
preserve  for  a  considerable  time. 

He  had  repeatedly,  he  declared,  called  the  attention  of 
the  members  of  the  Club  to  the  various  leakages  at  the 
dam,  but  he  received  the  stereotyped  reply  that  the 
masonry  was  all  right ;  that  it  had  been  "  built  to  stand 
for  centuries,"  and  that  such  a  thing  as  it  giving  way 
was  among  the  impossibilities.  But  Webber  did  not 
hesitate  to  continue  his  warnings.  Finally,  according  to 
his  own  statement,  he  was  instructed  to  "  shut  up  or  he 
would  be  bounced."  He  was  given  to  understand  that 
the  officers  of  the  Club  were  tired  of  his  croakings  and 
that  the  less  he  said  about  the  dam  from  thence  on  the 
better  it  would  be  for  him. 

Webber  then  laid  his  complaint  before  the  Mayor  of 
Johnstown,  not  more  than  a  month  ago.  He  told  him 
that  the  spring  freshets  were  due,  and  that,  if  they 
should  be  very  heavy,  the  dam  would  certainly  give 
way.  Webber  says  that  the  Mayor  promised  to  send  an 
expert  to  examine  the  dam  then,  and  if  necessary  to 
appeal  to  the  State.  Somehow  the  expert  was  not 
chosen,  the  appeal  was  not  made  at  Harrisburg,  and  the 
catastrophe  ensued. 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  37 

For  three  days  previous  to  the  final  outburst,  Webber 
says,  the  water  of  the  lake  forced  itself  through  the 
interstices  of  the  masonry,  so  that  the  front  of  the  dam 
resembled  a  large  watering  pot.  The  force  of  the  water 
was  so  great  that  one  of  these  jets  squirted  full  thirty 
feet  horizontally  from  the  stone  wall.  All  this  time,  too, 
the  feeders  of  the  lake,  particularly  three  of  them,  more 
nearly  resembled  torrents  than  mountain  streams  and 
were  supplying  the  dammed  up  body  of  water  with  quite 
3,000,000  gallons  of  water  hourly. 

At  1 1  o'clock  last  Friday  morning,  Webber  says,  he 
was  attending  to  a  camp  about  a  mile  back  from  the 
dam,  when  he  noticed  that  the  surface  of  the  lake 
seemed  to  be  lowering.  He  doubted  his  eyes,  and 
made  a  mark  on  the  shore,  and  then  found  that 
his  suspicions  were  undoubtedly  well  founded.  He 
ran  across  the  country  to  the  dam,  and  there  he  saw,  he 
declares,  the  water  of  the  lake  welling  out  from  beneath 
the  foundation  stoneo  of  the  dam.  Absolutely  helpless, 
he  was  compelled  to  stand  there  and  watch  the  gradual 
development  of  what  was  to  be  the  most  disastrous  flood 
of  this  continent. 

THE    DAM  COMMENCES  TO  BREAK. 

According  to  his  reckoning  it  was  12.45  when  the 
stones  in  the  centre  of  the  dam  began  to  sink  because  of 
the  undermining,  and  within  eight  minutes  a  gap  of 
twenty  feet  was  made  in  the  lower  half  of  the  wall  face, 
through  which  the  water  poured  as  though  forced  by 
machinery  of  stupenduous  power.  By  one  o'clock  the 
toppling  masonry,  which  before  had  partaken  some- 
what of  the  form  of  an  arch,  fell  in,  and  then  the  remain- 


38  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

der  of  the  wall  opened  outward  like  twin-gates,  and  the 
great  storage  lake  was  foaming  and  thundering  down 
the  valley  of  the  Conemaugh. 

Webber  became  so  awestruck  at  the  catastrophe  that 
he  declares  he  was  unable  to  leave  the  spot  until  the 
lake  had  fallen  so  low  that  it  showed  bottom  fifty  feet 
below  him.  How  long  a  time  elapsed  he  says  he  does  not 
know  before  he  recovered  sufficient  power  of  observa- 
tion to  notice  this,  but  he  does  not  thin-k  that  more  than 
five  minutes  passed.  Webber  says  that  had  the  dam 
been  repaired  after  the  spring  freshet  of  1888,  the  disas- 
ter would  not  have  occurred.  Had  it  been  given  ordi- 
nary attention  in  the  spring  of  1887,  the  probabilities  are 
that  thousands  of  lives  would  not  have  been  lost.  To 
have  put  the  dam  in  excellent  condition  would  not  have 
cost  $5,000.  Carelessness — which,  in  the  minds  of  an 
intelligent  coroner's  jury  might  be  termed  criminal — • 
was  the  sole  cause  of  the  deluge. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  New  York  Sun  of  June  4th,  contained  a  very 
interesting  and  truthful  graphic  dispatch  from  its  report- 
ers at  Johnstown.  They  were  among  the  first  to  enter 
Johnstown  after  the  catastrophe.  To  do  so  they  had  to 
travel  in  a  roundabout  way  fully  a  thousand  miles,  and 
finally  reached  their  destination  by  chartering  a  special 
train.  One  of  the  correspondents  telegraphed  as  follows  : 

"  The  time  has  not  yet  come  to  write  the  story  of  the 
disaster  trfat  has  turned  the  sparkling  Conemaugh  that 
rippled  so  pleasantly  through  the  beautiful  valley  into  a 
river  of  horror  in  a  valley  of  death. 

"  No  man,  nor  any  corps  of  men,  with  every  facility 
that  can  be  devised,  will  ever  be  able  to  write  a  story 
that  shall  fully  tell  of  the  awful  visitation  that  has  made 
the  valley  one  vast  charnel  house,  twenty  miles  long  and 
half  a  mile  wide,  and  that  has  stained  the  bright  moun- 
tain stream  a  color  that  not  all  the  water  that  can  flow 
between  now  and  eternity  can  ever  wash  out. 

"With  the  facilities  for  obtaining  information,  and  for 
sending  it  after  it  is  obtained,  that  are  the  best  that  can 
be  had  here  now,  it  is  impossible  to  give  more  than  a 
vague  idea  of  the  awful  desolation  that  is  universal  from 
Conemaugh  dam  to  far  below  Johnstown.  To  write  a 
column  is  but  to  glance  at  the  subject.  To  write  a  page 
would  be  but  to  skirt  lightly  over  its  points,  and  a  whole 
issue  of  the  Sun  would  not  contain  a  summary  of  all 
there  is  to  tell. 

"  This  much  alone  is  certain,  that,  whatever  has  been 

39 


40  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

written  is  too  weak  to  adequately  convey  an  idea  of  the 
extent  of  the  disaster,  and  that  the  horror  of  the  calam- 
ity is  bound  to  increase  daily  for  some  time  yet.  Explora- 
tion of  the  valley  beyond  Johnstown  has  but  just  begun 
On  this  account  not  even  a  good  estimate  of  the  total 
number  of  lives  lost  can  be  made. 

THE  LOSS  OF  LIFE  AND  PROPERTY. 

"  Adjutant  General  Hastings,  whose  bureau  here  is 
endeavoring  to  make  something  like  a  complete  record 
of  the  number  of  bodies  found,  sent  to  Governor  Beaver 
to-day  his  official  estimate  that  at  least  5,000  deaths 
would  be  absolutely  proven.  This  does  not  include  the 
large  number  of  deaths  that  will  never  be  known  of  posi- 
tively, and  General  Hastings'  own  estimate  of  the  total  is 
8,000. 

"  Nobody  thinks  this  too  small.  Nobody  who  has  been 
about  here  an  hour  would  think  anything  too  awful  to 
be  possible.  Just  now  there  was  a  report  that  1,000 
bodies  had  been  found  this  afternaon  at  Kernsville,  a 
suburb  of  Johnstown.  Nobody  questioned  it,  although 
it  subsequently  proved  to  be  untrue. 

"The  loss  of  property  will  be  far  up  into  the  millions, 
but  no  one  thinks  of  that.  The  tale  of  the  dead  is  bad, 
but  the  tale  of  the  living  is  bad,  too,  and  it  must  have 
attention.  There  are  as  many  of  them  as  of  the  dead, 
and  they  are  hard  pressed  for  food,  clothing  and  all  the 
necessaries  of  life.  Their  necessity  will  continue,  not  for 
a  day,  not  for  a  week,  but  for  months. 

"  They  ace  as  destitute  of  all  that  goes  to  support  life, 
except  the  bare  breath  in  their  bodies,  as  are  the  very 
dead  whose  half  nude  bodies  line  the  banks  of  the  Cone- 


THE  JOHNSTO WN  FLOOD.  4 I 

maugh  for  miles.  Their  ordinary  means  of  earning  a 
livelihood  are  gone,  with  the  rest  of  the  town,  but  there 
is  abundant  work  for  every  one.  But  there  must  be 
money  to  pay  the  workmen.  Food  for  the  immediate 
necessity  of  the  people  in  Johnstown  itself  is  coming  in 
from  every  side,  and  there  is  enough  to  relieve  their 
wants. 

"  What  the  situation  is  for  people  further  up  the  valley 
is  unknown  here,  but  their  plight  must  be  serious. 
Clothing  enough  for  the  absolute  necessity  of  the  time  is 
also  coming  in,  but  the  people  cannot  be  maintained  in 
idleness  so  long,  and  money  to  set  them  at  work  and 
keep  them  at  work  is  absolutely  necessary.  The  com- 
mittee in  charge  has  concluded,  at  the  very  outset,  to 
give  the  least  possible  amount  of  charity  and  the  most 
work.  They  ask  for  money  first  and  most,  and  their 
character  is  such  that  there  need  be  no  hesitation  about 
sending  it  in  generous  abundance. 

"  There  is  work  in  cleaning  up  and  rebuilding  to  last 
every  able-bodied  man  here  for  six  months,  and  it  will 
be  at  least  a  month  before  any  considerable  amount  of 
money  can  be  realized  from  their  labor.  The  generous 
heart  of  the  country  is  depended  upon  to  furnish  the 
means  of  keeping  these  men  at  work  for  at  least  that  long, 
and  perhaps  for  twice  or  three  times  as  long,  for  no  one 
can  tell  yet  how  great  will  be  the  task  of  recreating  the 
town. 

" '  I  have  visited  Johnstown  a  dozen  times  a  year  for  a 
long  time,'  said  a  business  man,  '  and  I  know  it  thor- 
oughly, but  I  haven't  the  least  idea  now  of  what  part 
of  it  this  is.  I  can't  even  tell  the  direction  the  streets 
used  to  run.' 


42  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

"  His  bewilderment  is  hardly  greater  than  that  of  the 
citizens  themselves.  They  wander  about  in  the  mud 
for  hours  trying  to  find  the  spot  where  the  house  of  some 
friend  or  relative  used  to  stand.  It  takes  a  whole  family 
to  locate  the  site  of  their  friends'  house  with  any  reason- 
able certainty. 

SIXTY    ACRES    OF    BURNING  DEBRIS. 

"  Wandering  over  this  muddy  plain  one  can  realize 
something  of  what  must  have  been  the  gigantic  force  of 
that  vast  whirlpool.  It  pressed  upon  the  town  like  some 
huge  millstone,  weighing  tens  of  thousands  of  tons  and 
revolving  with  awful  velocity,  pounding  to  powder  every- 
thing beneath.  But  the  conception  of  the  power  of  that 
horrible  eddy  of  the  flood  must  remain  feeble  until  that 
sixty  acres  of  burning  debris  is  inspected. 

"  It  seems  from  a  little  distance  like  any  other  mass  of 
wreckage,  though  vastly  longer  than  any  ever  before 
seen  in  this  country.  It  must  have  been  many  times 
more  tremendous  when  it  was  heaped  up  twenty  feet 
higher  over  its  whole  area  and  before  the  five  levelled  it 
off.  But  neither  then  nor  now  can  the  full  terror  of  the 
flood  that  piled  it  there  be  adequately  realized  until  a 
trip  across  parts  where  the  fire  has  been  extinguished 
shows  the  manner  in  which  the  stuff  composing  it  is 
packed  together.  It  is  not  a  heap  of  broken  timber  lying 
loosely  thrown  together  in  all  directions.  It  is  a  solid 
mass. 

"  The  boards  and  timbers  which  made  up  the  frame 
buildings  are  laid  together  as  closely  as  sticks  of  wood 
in  a  pile — more  closely,  for  they  are  welded  into  one 
another  until  each  stick  is  as  solidly  fixed  in  place  as 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  43 

though  all  were  one.  A  curious  thing  is  that  wherever 
there  are  a  few  boards  together  they  are  edge  up,  and 
never  standing  on  end  or  flat. 

"  The  terrible  force  of  the  whirlpool  that  ground  four 
square  miles  into  this  sixty  acres  of  wreckage  left  no 
opportunity  for  gaps  or  holes  between  pieces  in  the  river. 
Everything  was  packed  together  as  solidly  as  though  by 
sledge-hammer  blows. 

"  But  the  boards  and  timber  of  four  square  miles  of 
buildings  are  not  all  that  is  in  that  sixty-acre  mass.  An 
immense  amount  of  debris  from  further  up  the  valley  lies 
there.  Twenty-seven  locomotives,  several  Pullman  cars, 
and  probably  a  hundred  other  cars,  or  all  that  is  left  of 
them,  are  in  that  mass.  Fragments  of  iron  bridges  can 
be  seen  sticking  out  occasionally  above  the  wreckage. 

"  They  are  about  the  only  things  the  fire  has  not  lev- 
elled, except  the  curious  hillock  spoken  of  an  eighth  of 
a  mile  back  from  the  bridge,  where  the  flames  appar- 
ently raged  less  fiercely.  Scattered  over  the  area  also 
are  many  blackened  logs  that  were  too  big  to  be  entirely 
burned,  and  stick  up  now  like  spar  buoys  in  a  sea  of 
ruin.  Little  jets  of  flame,  almost  unseen  by  daylight, 
but  appearing  as  evening  falls,  are  scattered  thickly  over 
the  surface  of  the  wreckage. 

HUMAN    BODIES  BURNING  IN  THE  WRECKAGE. 

"All  this  is  horrible  to  see,  more  horrible  than  it  can 
possibly  be  thought  of;  but  the  worst  is  untold.  The 
smoke  that  hovers  over  the  wreckage  by  the  bridge,  and 
floats  in  light  blue  clouds  above  the  town,  is  heavy  with 
an  odor  rarely  smelled.  People  in  New  York  who 
remember  the  smell  of  the  ruins  of  the  Belt  Line  stables, 


44  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

after  their  destruction  by  fire,  when  1,200  horses  had 
perished,  know  what  the  odor  is.  But  it  is  the  flesh  of 
human  beings,  not  of  horses,  that  cause  the  odors  at 
which  every  newcomer  here  shivers  with  horror. 

"  Those  who  have  been  here  long  don't  mind  it ;  they 
are  used  to  it,  and  there  are  more  matters  than  smells  to 
attend  to.  The  cruel  whirlpool  that  pounded  four 
square  miles  of  buildings  into  dust  and  splinters  did  not 
spare  the  people.  Their  bodies  were  ground  beneath 
the  pressure  of  the  awful  millstone  of  the  flood,  as  were 
the  brick  and  mortar  of  the  buildings.  They  were  torn 
limb  from  limb,  heaped  together,  torn  apart,  scattered 
and  mingled  in  the  mass  as  were  the  timbers  and  boards 
of  the  pine  buildings. 

"  Finally  they  were  lodged  in  that  solid  mass  of  sixty 
acres  of  debris  along  with  the  ruins  of  their  homes 
wedged  in  as  tightly  as  though  human  flesh  was  no 
more  than  broken  wood  and  iron.  There  they  are,  those 
that  have  not  been  burned  in  the  fire  that  levelled  the 
whole  mass,  or  that  were  not  carried  above  the  t  >p  of 
the  bridge  in  the  first  rush  of  the  flood.  How  many 
there  were  cannot  be  told.  There  were,  perhaps,  as 
many  as  there  were  horses  in  the  Belt  Line  stables. 
Scores  of  bodies  have  already  been  removed  from  along 
the  edges  of  the  area  of  wreckage,  but  that  is  only  the 
beginning. 

"  The  fire  has  kept  men  off,  and  now  that  the  rain  and 
the  Pittsburg  firemen  are  subduing  the  flames  it  is  found 
that  the  debris  is  packed  so  closely  that  it  is  hopeless 
to  attempt  to  penetrate  it  except  by  beginning  at  the 
edges  and  working  into  it.  That  work  will  take  weeks. 
A  few  bodies  have  been  pulled  out  where  they  were 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  45 

on  the  surface,  but  even  these  cannot  all  be  gotten  out. 
The  body  of  a  boy  has  lain  all  day  beside  the  iron  frame 
of  a  locomotive  tender  near  the  bridge  in  plain  sight, 
but  beyond  reach. 

"  A  most  serious  feature  of  the  lodging  of  this  mass  of 
stuff  against  the  bridge  is  that  all  the  water  of  the  Cone- 
maugh  and  of  Stony  creek  has  to  pass  through  it  on  its 
way  to  the  Allegheny  and  to  the  water  supply  source  of 
Pittsburg.  The  bodies  in  the  mass  are  already  begin- 
ning to  emit  an  odor  more  offensive  than  that  of  their 
roasting,  and  the  danger  to  the  health  of  localities  fur- 
ther down  stream  is  believed  to  be  immediate  and  ser- 
ious. 

"  Of  the  rest  of  Johnstown,  and  the  collection  of  towns 
within  sight  of  the  bridge,  not  much  is  to  be  said.  They 
are,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  gone,  as  Johnstown  is 
gone.  Far  up  the  gap  through  which  came  the  flood  a 
large  brick  building  remains  standing,  but  ruined.  It  is 
all  that  is  left  of  one  of  the  biggest  wire  mills  and  steel 
works  in  the  country.  Turning  around  below  the  bridge 
are  the  works  of  the  Cambria  Iron  Company. 

"The  buildings  are  still  standing,  but  they  are  pretty 
well  ruined,  and  the  machinery,  with  which  they  were 
filled,  is  either  totally  destroyed  or  damaged  almost 
beyond  repair.  High  up  on  the  hill  at  the  left  and  scat- 
tered up  on  other  hills  in  sight  are  many  dwellings, 
neat,  well  kept,  and  attractive  places  apparently,  and 
looking  as  bright  and  fresh  now  as  before  the  awful  tor- 
rent wiped  out  of  existence  everything  in  the  valley 
below. 

"  This  is  Johnstown  and  its  immediate  vicinity  as  nearly 
as  words  can  paint  it.  It  is  a  single  feature,  one  section 


46  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

out  of  fifteen  miles  of  horror  that  stretches  through  this 
once  lovely  valley  of  the  Allegheny.  What  is  true  of 
Johnstown  is  true  of  every  town  for  miles  up  and  down. 
The  desolation  of  one  town  may  differ  from  the  desola- 
tion in  others  as  one  death  may  differ  from  another ;  but 
it  is  desolation  and  death  everywhere — desolation  so 
complete,  so  relentless,  so  dreadful  that  it  is  absolutely 
beyond  the  conception  of  men  who  have  not  seen  it — 
death  in  forms  more  varied,  more  painful  and  more  hor- 
rible than  ever  were  devised  by  the  most  atrocious  tor- 
turer of  the  Inquisition.  Many  have  been  burned  to 
death  and  many  have  been  drowned,  but  few  have  been 
called  upon  to  die  with  the  water  surging  about  their 
faces  while  fire  burned  their  limbs,  a  death  that  scores 
suffered  after  the  flood  heaped  them  up  against  the 
bridge  here. 

"  There  is  one  thing  even  those  who  have  been  longest 
here  and  who  have  plunged  deepest  into  the  horrors  that 
fill  the  valley  as  completely  as  did  the  flood  have  not  yet 
forgotten,  and  that  they  say  they  never  can  forget — that 
is,  the  shrieks  of  the  victims  whose  fate  it  was  to  die  by 
fire  and  water  at  once. 

"  The  pitiful  sound  filled  the  valley  at  this  point  for 
hours  above  the  roar  of  the  flames  and  the  din  and  smash 
of  the  debris-laden  torrent.  Hundreds  were  reached 
and  rescued.  Hundreds  died  within  sight  of  men  who 
would  almost  have  given  their  own  lives  to  save  them. 

THE  NUMBER  OF  VICTIMS  MAY  NEVER  BE  KNOWN. 

"  The  scene  in  Johnstown  simply  beggars  description. 
All  that  has  been  printed  and  told  about  it  falls  short  of 
the  reality.  The  worst  about  the  disaster  will  probably 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  47 

never  be  known,  for  the  reason  that  the  flood  and  fire  have 
so  scattered  the  victims  through  such  a  wide  extent  of 
territory  that  no  record  can  be  made  and  only  a  list  made 
of  a  few  thousand  missing. 

"  Many  people,  too,  have  left  Johnstown  never  to  return, 
their  all  having  been  destroyed.  It  would  require  a 
census  taker  six  months  to  complete  anything  approach- 
ing a  detailed  statement  of  the  dead,  and  no  tabulation 
has  been  attempted  yet.  Burned  and  ground  to  pieces 
at  the  great  dam  of  debris  at  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad 
bridge  are  the  remains  of  hundreds  of  people. 

"  Underneath  the  ruins  of  the  town  are  many  more. 
Swept  along  down  the  river,  lodged  in  driftwood  on  the 
banks,  caught  in  dams  and  lodged  in  trees  and  houses 
at  the  bottom  are  still  more. 

"  '  Where  were  most  of  the  bodies  found  ?  '  asked  a 
young  man  who  came  here. 

"  '  Everywhere/  was  the  answer. 

"  Johnstown  has  been  well  described  as  a  scooped  hol- 
low between  the  hills,  made  on  the  pattern  of  a  hollow 
in  a  man's  hand  when  he  holds  his  palm  upward  until 
the  fingers  are  raised.  The  hills,  of  course,  take  the 
place  of  the  fingers  of  the  hands.  They  are  covered  with 
forests  that  have  never  been  cut  off,  and  which  loom  up 
gloomy  and  solemn.  On  the  sides  of  some  of  the  hills 
cuts  have  been  made  for  the  railroads  and  their  sidings. 

"  Together  the  location  is  that  which  is  invariably  des- 
cribed as  a  beautiful  one.  The  main  portion  of  the 
town  was  on  the  flats  and  hollow  between  Stony  creek 
and  Conemaugh  river,  and  the  mistake  has  been  made 
by  the  majority  of  the  people  in  thinking  of  the  accident 


48  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

that  most  of  these  houses  were  wooden  ones  and  of 
rather  a  poor  character." 

A  special  reporter  of  the  Public  Ledger,  the  great 
newspaper  of  George  W.  Childs,  telegraphed  on  the  2nd 
day  of  June  as  follows: 

"  I  have  just  come  from  Johnstown  proper,  over  a 
/ope  bridge  which  was  completed  this  afternoon.  I 
reached  there  at  5  o'clock  last  night,  and  tell  only  what 
1  did  see  and  do  know. 

"  The  mighty  wave  that  rushed  through  the  Conemaugh 
Valley  on  Friday  evening  cut  a  swath  of  death  13  miles 
long.  In  this  way  lay  one  of  the  most  thickly  popula- 
ted centres  of  the  Keystone  State,  and  within  a  few 
minutes  from  the  time  the  dam  at  Lake  Conemaugh 
broke  houses  were  rolling  over  one  another  in  a  mad 
whirl,  as  they  were  carried  by  the  seething  waters  down 
the  gorge  between  the  endless  hills. 

"  At  Johnstown  the  whole  centre  of  the  city  was  cut,  as 
if  a  mammoth  scythe  had  passed  over  the  land.  At  that 
place  was  a  large  stone  bridge  of  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road Company,  one  of  the  strongest  that  the  company 
owns.  The  Conemaugh  river  is  crossed  by  it  at  an 
angle.  Into  this  angle  houses,  trees  and  fences  that 
came  down  the  left  side  of  the  river  rushed,  and  were 
piled  one  on  top  of  another  until  the  arches  under  the 
bridge  were  closed,  the  current  of  the  Conemaugh  was 
changed  and  the  wreckage  began  to  pile  on  high  until 
rafters  and  timbers  projected  above  the  stone.  Then  the 
houses,  nearly  all  crowded  with  people,  crashed,  one 
after  another,  until  the  terrible  wreckage  extended  a  half 
mile  up  the  stream-  No  pen  can  tell  the  horror  or  the 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  49 

shrieks  of  the  thousands  who  y^re  in  the  mass  of  float- 
ing ruins. 

AN  ADDED  HORROR  OF  FIRE. 

"  Shortly  after  the  blockade  had  formed  the  dry  timbers 
of  the  houses  caught  fire,  and  the  mass  nearest  the  rail- 
road bridge  became  a  glowing  furnace.  Hundreds  of 
people,  who  had  not  been  drowned  or  crushed  to  death 
in  the  mad  rush  down  stream,  were  burned  alive.  Their 
shrieks  as  the  flames  reached  them  made  the  most  stout- 
hearted wring  their  hands  in  agony  at  their  inability  to 
render  assistance.  The  wind  blew  from  up  stream.  The 
air  became  filled  with  the  gruesome  odors,  until  at  last 
the  horrors  to  sight,  hearing  and  smell  became  so  great 
that  persons  in  the  vicinity  were  forced  to  leave  the 
place.  Meanwhile  the  greater  bulk  of  the  houses  had 
gone  down  along  the  right  bank.  One  mad  rush  car- 
ried away  a  portion  of  the  stone  bridge,  and  then  the 
flood  bore  down  upon  the  thousands  of  homes  and  floated 
them  further  westward  in  the  Conemaugh.  It  was  only 
a  little  after  5  o'clock  Friday  afternoon  when  the  first 
warning  came,  and  as  it  had  been  raining  heavily  all  day 
the  citizens  of  Johnstown  and  the  neighboring  hamlets 
thought  that  the  slowly  rising  waters  only  meant  a  light 
flood. 

"  Thus  the  inhabitants  were  either  grouped  in  windows 
or  in  the  open  doors  watching  what  was  expected  would 
be  an  imposing  spectacle,  but  nothing  more.  No  one 
seemed  to  think  it  necessary  that  they  should  take  to  the 
hills,  and  so  all  were  caught  in  the  fearful  rush. 

BODIES  ALONG  THE  RIVER  BANKS. 

"  I  walked  late  yesterday  afternoon  from  New  Florence 
4 


£0  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

to  a  place  opposite  Johnstown,  a  distance  of  four  miles. 
I  describe  what  I  actually  saw.  All  along  the  way  bodies 
were  seen  lying  on  the  river  banks.  In  one  place  a 
woman  was  half  buried  in  the  mud,  only  a  limb  showing. 
In  another  was  a  mother  with  her  babe  clasped  to  her 
breast. 

"  Further  along  lay  a  husband  and  wife,  their  arms 
wound  around  each  other's  necks.  Probably  50  bodies 
were  seen  on  that  one  side  of  the  river,  and  it  must  be 
remembered  that  here  the  current  was  the  swiftest  and 
consequently  fewer  of  the  dead  bodies  were  landed 
among  the  bushes.  On  the  opposite  side  bodies  could 
also  be  seen,  but  they  were  all  covered  with  mud. 

"  As  I  neared  Johnstown  the  wreckage  became  grand 
in  its  massive  proportions.  In  order  to  show  the  force 
of  the  current  I  will  say  that  three  miles  below  Johns- 
town I  saw  a  grand  piano  lying  on  the  bank,  and  not  a 
board  or  key  was  broken.  It  must  have  been  lifted  on 
the  crest  of  the  wave  and  laid  gently  on  the  bank.  In 
another  place  were  two  large  iron  boilers.  They  had 
evidently  been  treated  by  the  torrent  much  the  same  as 
the  piano  had  been. 

HEARTRENDING     SCENES. 

"  The  scenes  as  I  neared  Johnstown  were  the  most  heart- 
rending that  man  was  ever  called  on  to  look  upon. 
Probably  3000  people  were  scattered  in  groups  along  the 
Pennsylvania  Railroad  track,  and  every  one  of  them  had 
a  relative  lying  dead  either  in  the  wreckage  above,  in 
the  river  below  or  in  the  still  burning  furnace.  Not  a 
house  that  was  left  standing  was  plumb.  Hundreds  ot 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  51 

them  were  burned  on  their  sides, and  in  some  cases  three 
or  four  stood  one  on  top  of  the  other. 

THE    CAMBRIA    IRON    WORKS. 

"  Two  miles  from  Johnstown,  on  the  opposite  side  of 
the  river  from  where  I  walked,  stood  one-half  of  the 
water  works  of  the  Cambria  Iron  Company,  a  structure 
that  had  been  built  of  massive  stone.  It  was  filled  with 
planks  from  houses  and  a  large  abutment  of  wreckage 
was  piled  up  of  fully  50  feet  in  front  of  it.  A  little  above, 
on  the  same  side,  could  be  seen  what  was  left  of  the 
Cambria  Iron  Works,  which  was  one  of  the  finest  plants 
in  the  world. 

"  Some  of  the  walls  are  still  standing,  it  is  true,  but  not 
a  vestige  of  the  valuable  machinery  remained  in  sight. 
The  two  upper  portions  of  the  works  were  swept  away 
almost  entirely,  and  under  the  pieces  of  fallen  iron  and 
wood  could  be  seen  the  bodies  of  40  workmen. 

"  At  this  point  there  was  a  bend  in  the  river,  and  the 
fiery  furnace,  blazing  for  a  quarter  of  a  mile  square  above 
the  stone  bridge,  came  into  view.  '  My  God  ! '  screamed 
a  woman,  who  was  hastening  up  the  track,  '  can  it  be 
that  any  are  in  there  ? '  '  Yes,  over  a  thousand/  replied 
a  man,  who  had  just  come  from  the  neighborhood,  and 
it  is  now  learned  that  he  estimated  one  thousand  too  few. 
The  scenes  of  misery  and  suffering  and  agony  and  des- 
pair can  hardly  be  chronicled. 

"  One  man,  a  clerk  named  Woodruff,  was  reeling  along 
intoxicated.  Suddenly,  with  a  frantic  shout,  he  threw 
himself  over  the  bank  into  the  flood,  and  would  have 
been  carried  to  his  death  had  he  not  been  caught  by 
some  persons  below.  '  Let  me  die,'  he  exclaimed,  when 


52  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

they  rescued  him.  '  My  wife  and  children  are  gone  ;  I 
have  no  use  for  my  life.'  An  hour  later  I  saw  Wood- 
ruff lying  on  the  ground  entirely  overcome  by  liquor. 

"  Intemperance  was  a  merciful  boon  in  his  case.  Per- 
sons who  knew  him  said  that  he  had  never  tasted  liquor 
before.  Probably  50  barrels  of  whisky  were  washed 
ashore  just  below  Johnstown,  and  those  men  who  had 
lost  everything  in  this  world  sought  solace  in  the  fiery 
liquid,  so  it  was  that  as  early  as  6  o'clock  last  night  the 
shrieks  and  cries  of  women  were  intermingled  with 
drunken  howls  and  curses. 

RUFFIANISM    RAMPANT. 

"  What  was  worse  than  anything,  however,  was  the  fact 
that  incoming  trains  from  Pittsburg  brought  hundreds 
of  toughs  who  joined  with  the  Slavs  and  Bohemians  in 
rifling  the  bodies,  stealing  furniture,  insulting  women 
and  endeavoring  control  of  any  rescuing  parties  that 
tried  to  seek  the  bodies  under  the  bushes  and  in  the 
limbs  of  trees.  There  was  no  one  in  authority,  no  one  to 
take  command  of  even  a  citizens'  posse  could  it  have  been 
organized.  A  lawless  mob  seemed  to  control  this  nar- 
row neck  of  land  that  was  the  only  approach  to  the  city 
of  Johnstown. 

"  I  saw  persons  take  watches  from  dead  men's  pockets 
and  brutally  tear  finger  rings  from  their  hands.  The 
ruffians  also  climbed  into  the  overturned  houses  and 
ransacked  the  rooms,  taking  whatever  they  thought 
valuable.  No  one  dared  check  them  in  this  work  and 
consequently  the  scene  was  not  as  riotous  as  it  would 
have  been,  for  the  troops  had  not  had  sway.  In  fact, 
i  they  became  beastly  drunk  after  a  time  and  were  seen 


THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD.  5  3 

lying  around  in  a  stupor.  Unless  the  military  are  on 
hand  early  to-morrow  there  may  be  serious  trouble,  for 
each  train  pours  loads  of  people  of  every  description  into 
the  vicinity,  and  Slavs  are  flocking  like  birds  of  prey  from 
the  surrounding  country. 

A    FRIGHTFUL  ESTIMATE. 

'•'  Here  I  will  give  the  latest  a  conservative  estimate  of 
the  dead :  It  is  between  seven  and  eight  thousand 
drowned  and  two  thousand  burned. 

"  The  committee  of  Johnstown,  in  their  bulletin,  placed 
the  number  of  lives  lost  at  8000.  In  doing  so  they  are 
figuring  the  inhabitants  of  their  own  city  and  the  towns 
immediately  adjoining.  But  it  must  be  remembered  that 
the  flood  swept  ten  miles  through  a  populous  district 
before  it  even  reached  the  locality  over  which  this  com- 
mittee had  supervision.  It  devasted  a  tract  the  size  and 
shape  of  Manhattan  Island.  Here  are  a  few  facts  that 
will  show  the  geographical  outlines  of  the  terrible 
disaster.  The  Hotel  Hurlburt,  of  Johnstown,  a  massive 
three-story  building  of  100  rooms,  has  vanished.  There 
were  in  it  75  guests  at  the  time  of  the  flood.  Two  only 
are  known  to  be  alive.  The  Merchants'  Hotel  is 
levelled.  How  many  were  inside  it  is  not  known,  but  as 
yet  no  one  has  been  seen  who  came  from  there  or  heard 
of  an  inmate  escaping.  At  the  Conemaugh  Round 
House  forty-one  locomotives  were  swept  down  the 
stream  and  before  they  reached  the  stone  bridge  all  the 
iron  and  steel  work  had  been  torn  from  their  boilers. 

THE  SCENE  AT  THE  STONE  BRIDGE. 

"  It  is  almost  impossible  in  this  great  catastrophe  to  go 
more  into  details.  I  stood  on  the  stone  bridge  at  6 
o'clock,  and  looked  into  the  seething  mass  of  ruin  below 


54  TH£  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

me.  At  one  place  the  blackened  body  of  a  babe  was 
seen;  in  another  14  skulls  could  be  counted.  Further 
along  the  bones  became  thicker  and  thicker,  until  at  last 
at  one  place  it  seemed  as  if  a  concourse  of  people,  who 
had  been  at  a  ball  or  entertainment,  had  been  carried  in 
a  bunch  and  incinerated.  At  this  time  the  smoke  was 
still  rising  to  the  height  of  50  feet,  and  it  is  expected 
when  it  dies  down  the  charred  bodies  will  be  seen 
dotting  the  entire  mass  of  burned  debris.  A  cable  has 
been  run  last  night  from  the  end  of  the  stone  bridge  to 
the  nearest  point  across — a  distance  of  300  feet.  Over 
this  cable  was  run  a  trolley  and  a  swing  was  fastened 
under  it. 

IN  JOHNSTOWN. 

"  A  man  went  over,  and  he  was  the  first  one  who  visited 
Johnstown  since  the  awful  disaster.  I  followed  him 
to-day.  I  walked  along  the  hillside  and  saw  hundreds 
of  persons  lying  on  the  wet  grass,  wrapped  in  blankets 
or  quilts.  It  was  growing  cold,  and  a  misty  rain  had  set 
in.  Shelter  was  not  to  be  had,  and  houses  on  the  hill- 
side that  had  not  been  swept  away  were  literally  packed 
from  top  to  bottom.  The  bare  necessities  of  life  were 
soon  at  a  premium,  and  loaves  of  bread  sold  at  fifty  cents. 

"  Fortunately,  however,  the  relief  train  from  Pittsburg 
arrived  at  7  o'clock.  Otherwise  the  horrors  of  starva- 
tion would  have  been  added.  All  provisions,  however, 
had  to  be  carried  over  a  rough,  rocky  road  a  distance  of 
four  miles  (as  I  know,  who  had  been  compelled  to  walk 
it,)  and  in  many  cases  they  were  seized  by  the  toughs, 
and  the  people  who  were  in  need  of  .food  did  not  get  it. 

THE  SUFFERINGS  OF  THE  SURVIVORS. 

"  It  may  sound  strange  to  say  much  about  the  damage 


THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD.  5  5 

to  property,  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  the  living 
are  those  who  now  suffer,  and  aid  is  asked  for  the  thou- 
sands who  are  left  homeless  and  without  a  change  of 
clothing.  I  learned  in  Johnstown  that  the  great  Char- 
tiers  Steel  Works  are  swept  away,  with  all  its  valuable 
machinery.  This  alone  entails  a  loss  of  $2,000,000. 
One  million  will  not  make  the  Cambria  Iron  Works 
whole. 

"  Rich  and  poor  were  served  alike  by  this  terrible  dis- 
aster. I  saw  a  girl  standing  in  her  bare  feet  on  the  river 
bank,  clad  in  a  loose  petticoat  and  with  a  shawl  over- 
head. At  first  I  thought  she  was  an  Italian  woman,  but 
her  face  showed  that  I  was  mistaken.  She  was  the  belle 
of  the  town — the  daughter  of  a  wealthy  Johnstown 
banker — and  this  single  petticoat  and  shawl  were  not 
only  all  that  were  left  her,  but  all  that  were  saved  from 
the  magnificent  residence  of  her  father.  She  had  escaped 
to  the  hills  not  an  instant  too  soon.  The  Solicitor  of 
Johnstown,  Mr.  George  Martin,  said  to  me  to-day:  '  All 
my  money  went  away  in  the  flood.  My  house  is  gone. 
So  are  all  my  clothes,  but,  thank  God,  my  family  is 
safe.'  " 

On  the  following  day  this  correspondent  wrote  as  fol- 
lows : 

THE  LOSS  OF  LIFE. 

"  The  developments  of  every  hour  make  it  more 
and  more  apparent  that  the  exact  number  of  lives 
lost  in  the  Johnstown  horror  will  never  be  known.  All 
estimates  that  have  been  made  up  to  this  time  are  con- 
servative, and,  when  all  is  known,  will  doubtless  be  found 
to  have  been  too  small.  Over  1000  bodies  have  been 


56  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

found  since  sunrise  to-day,  and  the  most  skeptical  con- 
cede that  the  remains  of  thousands  more  rest  beneath 
the  debris  above  Johnstown  bridge. 

"  The  population  of  Johnstown,  the  surrounding  suburbs 
and  the  portion  of  the  valley  affected  by  the  flood  is,  or 
was,  50,000  to  55,000.  Associated  Press  representatives 
to-day  interviewed  numerous  leading  citizens  of  Johns- 
town who  survived  the  flood,  and  the  concensus  of  opin- 
ion was  that  fully  30  per  cent,  of  -the  residents  of  Johns- 
town and  Cambria  had  been  victims  of  the  continued  dis- 
asters of  fire  and  water.  If  this  be  true  the  total  loss 
of  life  in  the  entire  valley  cannot  be  less  than  7000  or 
8000,  and  possibly  much  greater. 

'•  Of  the  thousands  who  were  devoured  by  the  flames, 
and  whose  ashes  rest  beneath  the  smoking  debris  above 
Johnstown  bridge,  no  definite  information  can  ever  be 
obtained.  As  little  will  be  learned  of  the -hundreds  who 
sank  beneath  the  current  and  were  borne  swiftly  down 
the  Conemaugh,  only  to  be  deposited  hundreds  of  miles 
below  on  the  banks  and  in  the  driftwood  of  the  raging 
Ohio.  Probably  one-third  of  the  dead  will  never  be 
recovered,  and  it  will  take  a  list  of  the  missing  weeks 
hence  to  enable  even  a  close  estimate  to  be  made  of  the 
number  of  bodies  that  were  to  be  seen  floating  in  the 
river  in  the  brief  hour.  That  this  estimate  can  never  be 
accurate  is  understood  when  it  is  remembered  that,  in 
many  instances,  whole  families  and  their  relatives  were 
swept  away  and  found  a  common  grave  beneath  the 
wild  waste  of  waters.  The  total  destruction  of  the  city 
leaves  no  data  to  even  demonstrate  that  the  names  of 
these  unfortunates  ever  found  place  on  the  pages  of  eter- 
nity's history." 


CHAPTER  IV. 

ON  the  5th  day  of  June,  five  days  of  the  disaster,  the 
people  had  fairly  recovered  from  their  stupor,  brought 
on  by  this  terrible  disaster  and  an  earnest  effort  was 
made  to  get  some  definite  information  as  to  the  total 
number  of  persons  whose  lives  were  lost  in  the  recent 
flood  and  its  attendant  horror  of  fire  at  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad  bridge.  The  further  the  inquiry  was  presented, 
however,  the  more  uncertain  the  ascertainment  of  any 
authentic  figures  became.  There  had  up  to  that  time 
been  no  general  system  of  keeping  records,  and  when  it 
is  remembered  that  the  loss  of  life  began  six  miles  above 
Johnstown,  and  extended  20  miles  below  in  a  path  rang- 
ing from  TOO  feet  to  a  mile  in  width,  it  will  be  seen  how 
difficult  it  would  have  been  to  adopt  any  such  system  in 
so  sudden  an  emergency.  Dead  bodies  have  been  found 
floating  in  the  rivers  into  which  the  Conemaugh  empties 
as  far  west  as  Pittsburg,  and  without  doubt  many  of 
them  still  lie  buried  in  the  stream  or  are  lodged  under 
the  debris  and  sand. 

The  whole  territory  in  which  these  dead  bodies  have 
been  located  is  of  so  vast  an  extent,  coming  under  the 
notice  of  so  many  different  authorities,  that  no  complete 
record  could  have  been  kept,  especially  in  view  of  the 
fact  that  it  was  deemed  expedient  in  many  places  to 
remove  the  remains  from  sight  forever  as  quickly  as  pos- 
sible. 

An  actual  count  of  the  dead  is  absolutely  impossible. 
The  streets  of  Johnstown  to-day  are  covered  in  many 

(57) 


58  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

places  houses  high  with  sand  and  rubbish  and  building 
material  and  household  utensils,  in  the  midst  of  which 
human  remains  are  being  constantly  discovered. 

A    VISIT   TO    THE   CAUSE   OF   THE    DISASTER. 

A  correspondent  of  the  New  York  Sun,  who  visited 
the  South  Fork  Fishing  Club's  dam  on  the  fourth  of 
June,  thus  telegraphed  his  observations : 

"  The  investigations  of  your  reporter  show  clearly  that 
the  major  part  of  whatever  responsibility  may  belong  to 
human  agencies  for  the  calamity  that  has  desolated  the 
Conemaugh  valley  must  be  placed  upon  the  South  Fork 
Fishing  And  Hunting  Club,  the  association  of  wealthy 
Pittsburg  gentlemen  that  has  for  four  or  five  years  past 
been  endeavoring  to  establish  a  sportsman's  paradise  at 
Conemaugh  Lake.  When  they  leased  the  lake  they 
closed  the  waste  gates,  through  which  all  the  water  that 
had  ever  before  accumulated  in  Conemaugh  Lake  had 
found  a  safe  and  speedy  exit.  It  is  measurably  certain 
that  had  the  waste  gales  been  maintained  the  dam  would 
never  have  given  way. 

"  They  were  removed,  it  is  said,  because  whenever  they 
were  opened  the  game  fish  with  which  the  lake  was 
being  stocked  would  escape.  The  fish  have  escaped  all 
the  same,  and  the  lives  of  8000  human  beings  have  gone 
with  them.  These  statements  are  made  after  a  visit  to 
the  spot  by  a  Sun  correspondent  and  an  inspection  of 
the  remains  of  the  dam,  and  after  listening  to  the 
accounts  of  the  residents  in  the  neighborhood  as  to  what 
was  the  condition  of  the  dam  before  the  disaster.  The 
visit  to  the  spot  was  not  easily  made.  No  one  had 
attempted  it  from  this  side  until  this  morning,  although 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  59 

news  of  various  sorts  about  it  had  been  brought  down  by 
a  few  people  living  near  it,  or  who  had  been  caught  near 
it  when  the  flood  came. 

"  At  6  o'clock  this  morning  a  Sun  man  set  out  for  the 
lake  by  way  of  Conemaugh,  and  thence  nine  miles  up 
into  the  mountains  over  the  summits  of  some  of  the 
highest  parts  of  the  Alleghenies,  and  then  down  as  near 
the  dam  as  the  road  leads.  The  shorter  and  more  direct 
route  up  the  river  was  impracticable,  the  flood  having 
washed  out  impartially  the  railroad  on  one  side  and  the 
wagon  road  on  the  other,  and  the  river  having  cut  out 
new  channels  so  winding  and  crooked  that  they  would 
have  to  be  crossed  a  dozen  times  in  every  mile  of  the 
way.  The  stream  is  still  so  swollen  that  it  cannot  be 
forded. 

"  After  reaching  the  vicinity  of  the  dam,  two  miles  more 
of  tramping  over  a  mass  of  rocks  and  gravel,  from  ten 
to  twenty  feet  deep,  was  necessary  to  reach  and  get 
around  the  dam.  As  to  the  dam  itself,  no  description 
yet  printed  gives  any  hint  as  to  its  character.  There  was 
no  massive  masonry,  nor  any  tremendous  exhibition  of 
engineering  skill  in  designing  the  structure  or  putting  it 
up.  There  was  no  masonry  at  all  in  fact,  nor  any  engi- 
neering worthy  of  the  name.  The  dam  was  simply  a  gigan- 
tic heap  of  earth  dumped  across  the  course  of  a  moun- 
tain stream  between  two  hills.  It  was  faced  on  each  side 
with  a  layer  of  heavy  rough  stone,  loosely  thrown  to- 
gether and  uncemented.  This  pile  of  earth  was,  as  has 
been  stated,  about  75  feet  high  and  90  feet  thick  at  the 
base.  At  the  summit  it  was  levelled  off  so  as  to  be  about 
20  feet  wide,  and  a  wagon  road  crossed  it.  It  was  an 
ordinary  dirt  road,  and  there  was  no  rock  or  masonry 


60  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

beneath  it.  The  width  of  the  stream  at  the  bottom  of 
the  dam  was  about  40  feet.  At  the  top  the  dam  was 
about  400  feet  long.  It  was  built  straight  across  the  gap, 
and  neither  face  nor  back  was  curved.  The  slopes  were 
about  the  same  on  both  face  and  back. 

"  The  dam  was  built  many  years  ago  to  create  a  reser- 
voir for  use  as  a  feeder  to  the  Pennsylvania  Canal.  The 
builders  placed  in  the  forty-foot  space  at  the  bottom, 
where  the  creek  ran,  five  huge  pipes,  each  as  large  as  a 
hogshead.  These  were  covered  by  an  arch  of  massive 
masonry,  and  were  arranged  to  be  opened  or  closed  by 
levers  in  a  tower  that  was  built  in  the  centre  of  the  dam. 
These  five  big  pipes  were  calculated  to  be  large  enough 
to  carry  off  all  surplus  water  that  could  ever  be  poured 
into  the  lake  above  and  which  could  not  escape  by  the 
regular  exit,  which  was  a  sluiceway  around  one  corner 
of  the  dam  at  a  level  of  eight  or  ten  feet  below  the  top. 
This  sluiceway  was  really  a  new  stream,  the  water  pass- 
ing off  through  it  finding  its  picturesquely  winding 
course  down  the  hillside,  and  running  with  the  stream 
again  some  distance  below  the  dam.  The  sluiceway 
and  waste  gates  never  failed  to  do  the  work  for  which 
they  were  designed,  and  there  is  no  reason  to  suppose 
that  they  would  have  failed  to  do  so  at  the  present  time 
and  for  the  future  had  they  been  maintained  as  the 
builders  contemplated. 

"  When  the  Pennsylvania  Canal  was  abandoned  the 
dam  became  useless,  and  was  neglected.  The  tower  in 
which  the  machinery  for  managing  the  waste  gates  was 
located  is  said  to  have  fallen  into  ruin  a  few  years  ago. 
The  lake  was  leased  by  the  Pittsburg  Sportsman's  Asso- 
ciation. Engineer  Fulton,  of  the  Cambria  Iron  Com- 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  6 1 

pany,  made  an  inspection  of  it  and  pronounced  it  danger- 
ous. The  association  set  out,  they  declared,  to  improve 
and  strengthen  it.  They  did  cut  off  two  feet  from  the 
top  of  the  dam,  and  may  have  strengthened  it  in  some 
respects ;  but  either  because  the  waste  gates  were  so 
damaged  that  to  repair  them  would  have  been  an  expen- 
sive job,  or,  for  the  other  reason  mentioned,  the  fear  that 
the  fish  would  escape  by  the  waste  gates,  every  one  who 
lives  near  says  the  gates  were  permanently  stopped  up. 
The  present  appearance  of  the  wreck  of  the  dam  indic- 
ates the  truthfulness  of  the  story.  There  are  remnants 
of  the  waste  gate  masonry,  but  there  is  no  indication 
that  they  have  been  of  any  practical  use  for  a  long  time. 
"  Whatever  may  have  been  the  indirect  cause  of  the 
giving  way  of  the  heap  of  dirt  that  dammed  upper  Cone- 
maugh,  the  fearful  power  of  the  mass  of  water  which  was 
the  direct  cause  of  its  yielding  is  evident  all  about  the 
place.  In  the  centre  of  the  dam  is  a  gap  clear  down  to 
bed  rock  in  the  old  bed  of  the  stream,  and  sloping  rag- 
gedly upon  each  side  to  the  top,  where  it  is  at  least  200 
feet  wide.  Through  this  huge  gap  can  be  seen  a  vast 
area  of  yellowish  gravel  and  mud — a  very  deep  basin  in 
the  centre  back  of  the  dam,  rising  at  each  side  in  bluffs 
thirty  feet  high,  and  sloping  more  gradually  backward 
away  off  until  it  curves  to  the  left  and  is  cut  off  from 
view  by  a  point  of  land.  At  the  further  end  of  the  curve 
arc  the  big  club  house  and  a  number  of  cottages  erected 
for  members  of  the  club,  gay  bits  of  color  in  the  midst 
of  masses  of  green  trees.  This  mud  valley  is  not  less 
than  a  quarter  of  a  mile  wide  at  its  narrowest  point.  It 
is  generally  much  wider,  and  is  said  to  average  a  mile 
and  a  quarter. 


62  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

"  There  would  seem  to  have  been  enough  water  to  wash 
away  Johnstown  in  the  parts  of  the  huge  basin  that  can 
be  seen  through  the  gap  in  the  dam,  but  the  whole  length 
of  that  basin,  as  it  winds  irregularly  back  among  the 
hills,  is  three  miles,  and  all  the  water  in  that  area  of 
three  miles  by  a  mile  and  a  quarter  passed  out  through 
the  gap  in  the  dam  and  poured  itself  upon  the  devoted 
valley  below  in  a  torrent  75  feet  deep  and  200  feet  wide. 
Rushing  through  with  a  velocity  almost  inconceivable 
for  so  vast  a  mass,  it  took  a  full  hour  to  exhaust  the  res- 
ervoir, the  tremendous  pressure  from  behind  urging  the 
flood  on  to  its  most  disastrous  work.  Something  of  the 
awful  force  of  the  torrent  can  be  seen  on  the  land  below 
the  dam.  Formerly  it  was  a  densely  wooded  little  val- 
ley, nearly  straightaway  for  half  a  mile,  where  it  turned 
so  abruptly  to  the  right  as  to  make  almost  a  right  angle. 

"  The  creek,  coming  down  through  sluiceway  and  down 
the  mountain  side,  wandered  in  a  crooked  course  through 
the  bottom  of  the  valley.  Just  before  the  turn  it  swept 
out  a  good  way  toward  the  left  and  made  on  the  right 
bank  a  long  point  of  land.  This  point  was  very  heavily 
wooded.  On  the  opposite  bank  was  a  high  bluff,  covered 
with  forest  down  to  the  water's  edge.  For  three  quarters 
of  the  distance  from  the  dam  to  the  curve  the  formerly 
wooded  flats  are  low,  covered  with  gravel,  coarse  stone 
and  big  rocks,  twenty  feet  deep  at  the  upper  end  and  not 
less  than  ten  at  any  point.  The  creek  runs  through  the 
forty-feet  gap  where  the  waste  gates  used  to  be,  and 
through  a  deep  gully  in  the  mass  of  gravel  and  stone. 
There  is  no  vestige  of  trees  or  underbrush.  Just  before  the 
long  curve  begins,  where  formerly  there  was  a  bridge, 
the  deposit  of  gravel  is  thin,  but  the  heavily  wooded  point 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  63 

on  the  other  side  has  disappeared,  and  gravel  ten  feet 
deep  covers  the  spot. 

"On  the  opposite  bluff  the  trees  have  been  stripped 
away  and  the  side  of  the  hill  torn  out  for  forty  feet  up,  a 
clear  evidence  of  the  terrible  force  of  the  torrent  as  it 
whirled  about  the  right-angled  turn.  The  surface  of  the 
little  half-mile  valley  suggests  nothing  more  forcibly 
than  that  the  system  of  hydraulic  mining  used  in  the 
gold  regions  had  been  worked  for  a  long  time.  The 
debris  is  still  of  heavy  rock  and  gravel.  There  is  no 
dirt  in  it.  The  rush  of  waters  carried  with  it  every 
thing  but  the  heaviest  that  it  picked  up.  Many  of  what 
have  evidently  been  the  largest  and  heaviest  rocks  in  the 
face  of  the  dam  lie  broken  in  fragments  against  some 
other  rock  upon  which  they  were  hurled.  There  were 
two  houses  on  the  flats  of  the  half-mile  valley.  George 
Fisher  and  his  family  lived  in  the  first,  right  in  sight  of 
the  dam.  He  had  been  warned  that  the  dam  was  going 
to  go,  and  he  moved  out  in  time  and  saved  the  lives  of 
his  family,  but  little  else  besides  the  clothes  they  wore. 

"  George  Lamb,  with  his  wife  and  children  and  two 
pigs,  lived  just  by  the  bridge  further  down  the  valley. 
He  also  was  afraid  of  the  dam,  but  he  stayed  in  his  house 
until  he  heard  the  thunder  of  the  waters  pouring  through 
the  first  breach  in  the  dam.  Then  he  shouted  to  neigh- 
bors who  had  come  running  down  the  hill  to  rescue  his 
wife  and  children,  while  he  ran  himself  to  save  the  pigs. 
He  didn't  get  the  pigs.  If  the  neighbors  hadn't  helped 
him  out  along  with  his  family  he  would  have  been 
caught  in  the  first  rush  of  the  torrent.  The  flood,  he 
says,  seemed  to  follow  almost  instantly  after  the  thunder 
of  the  water  through  the  breach.  He  got  back  to  high 


64  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

ground  in  time  to  see  his  house  climb  the  face  of  the 
great  wall  of  water,  60  feet  high.  He  saw  it  roll  and 
toss  for  an  instant  with  Fisher's  house,  and  then  they 
were  flung  against  the  bluff  with  a  force  that  dashed 
them  into  splinters.  Not  a  fragment  of  them  was  found 
after  the  water  had  subsided,  and  Mr.  Lamb  can  scarcely 
tell  where  his  house  stood. 

" '  It's  all  changed  here,'  he  said  to-day.  '  I  can't  tell 
half  the  time  where  I  really  am.' 

"  Mr.  Lamb's  two  pigs  were  the  only  lives  lost  while 
the  flood  remained  in  sight  of  its  starting  point.  Not 
until  it  had  gone  half  a  mile  down  the  narrow  gulch  did 
it  strike  any  settlement  and  begin,  in  the  outskirts 
of  South  Forks,  its  fifteen  mile  course  of  ruin  and 
death. 

"  W.  H.  Pickerell,  operator  at  Mineral  Point  tower,  and 
one  and  a  quarter  miles  west  of  Mineral  Point  station, 
two  miles  this  side  of  South  Fork,  was  at  his  post  when 
the  flood  came. 

"  The  tower  is  quite  a  distance  above  the  head  of  the 
stream.  His  family  live  at  Mineral  Point  and  he  had 
been  very  anxious  about  the  condition  of  the  South 
Fork  dam.  At  about  10  A.  M.  on  May  3 1  he  sent  a  spec- 
ial message  to  his  family  to  warn  them  not  to  remain  in 
the  house.  He  also  sent  several  messages  in  the  fore- 
noon to  Dougherty,  the  operator  at  South  Fork,  asking 
about  the  condition  of  the  dam. 

"  The  replies  were  to  the  effect  that  their  watchman, 
Adam,  said  there  was  great  danger,  but  that  the 
operator's  opinion  was  that  there  was  not  much  dan- 
ger. At  about  i  P.  M.  Pickerell  received  a  message 
from  the  South  Fork  operator  that  the  dam  was  in  bad 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  65 

condition.     At  1.52  p.  M.  he  received  this  message  from 
South  Fork: 

"'The  water  is  running  over  the  breast  of  Lake  dam, 
in  centre,  and  west  side  is  becoming  dangerous. 

DOUGHERTY.' 

"  The  last  message  received  from  South  Fork,  and,  in 
fact,  the  last  message  received  at  Mineral  Point  from  any 
one  up  to  the  present  time,  was  received  at  2.25  P.  M.  : 

" '  The  dam  is  getting  worse,  and  may  possibly  go. 

J.  P.  WILSON.' 

"  Mr.  Wilson  is  superintendent  of  the  Argyle  Coal 
Company.  Pickerell  sent  this  message  to  East  Cone- 
maugh  as  soon  as  he  received  it,  together  with  instruc- 
tions to  have  it  circulated  among  the  people  there  at 
once.  The  operator  at  East  Conemaugh  wired  back  at 
2.25  P.  M.,  '  J.  O.'  these  being  the  letters  used  to  denote 
the  name  of  the  East  Conemaugh  operator,  Mr.  Mont- 
gomery. 

5 


CHAPTER  V. 

A  CORRESPONDENT  of  the  Philadelphia  Times,  writes 
about  the  break  of  the  dam  as  follows : 

"  Standing  on  what  still  remains  of  the  embankment, 
one  can  see  from  the  marks  all  around  him  how  tremen- 
dous was  the  force  of  the  shock  when  the  break  occurred. 
All  that  remains  is  seamed  from  side  to  side  so  that  it  is 
unsafe  to  go  near  the  edge  of  the  break.  When  it  is 
remembered  that  the  break  was  almost  instantaneous, 
the  dam  giving  way  with  two  loud  reports  in  rapid  suc- 
cession, some  idea  may  be  formed  of  the  force  with 
which  the  rush  of  the  flood  began.  The  experience  of 
Mr.  Joab  Salkeld,  who  lives  on  the  hillside  more  than  a 
mile  below  the  breast  of  the  dam,  will  still  further  illus- 
trate the  momentum  of  the  water.  He  was  lying  down 
at  the  time.  When  she  heard  the  first  report  his  wife 
roused  him,  telling  him  the  dam  had  broken.  He  had 
scarcely  time  to  get  to  the  window  to  see  the  flood  com- 
ing. An  instant  later  it  had  rolled  past,  leaving  a  suc- 
cession of  surging  and  angry  tides  behind.  Houses 
came  down  with  the  flood  and  were  dashed  to  pieces  as 
they  came.  Immense  trees  were  uprooted  and  carried 
along  like  straws  dashed  about  in  a  whirlpool.  In  many 
cases  forest  giants  were  snapped  off  as  if  they  had  stood 
in  the  track  of  a  cyclone.  The  verdant  valleys  became 
in  an  instant  a  mere  waste  of  sand  and  debris.  Even 
immense  rocks  were  carried  along  by  the  flood.  Oppo- 
site the  village  of  South  Forks  is  a  huge  boulder  weigh- 
ing fully  60,000  tons  that  was  not  there  before.  It  is  as 
(66) 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  6/ 

large  as  a  medium-sized  house.  Nothing  was  strong 
enough  to  resist  the  force  of  the  flood  where  its  blows 
had  full  effect — nothing  except  the  everlasting  hills. 
The  hills  indeed  played  a  very  important  part  in  the 
catastrophe.  South  Fork  creek  from  the  dam  to  its  con- 
fluence with  the  Conemaugh,  two  miles  below,  is  a  very 
rapid  stream.  Not  half  a  mile  below  the  breast  of  the 
dam  it  makes  a  sudden  turn  to  the  right.  At  this  point  juts 
out  a  little  mountain  piled  on  the  top  of  the  Alleghenies. 
It  was  against  this  that  the  flood  first  struck  after  being 
let  loose,  the  hills  throwing  it  back  with  a  reactionary 
force  momentarily  stronger  than  the  force  of  the  flood 
itself.  Midway  between  the  hill  and  dam  there  was  a 
large  frame  house.  Hurled  against  the  hill  by  the  force 
of  the  flood,  the  hill  dashed  it  back  with  a  thud  and  it 
was  ground  to  pieces  in  the  swirl.  Not  a  vestige  of  it 
remains.  Across  the  stream,  at  Lamb's  house,  was  a 
bridge — Lamb's  bridge.  It  was  the  first  of  a  hundred 
other  bridges  to  be  swept  away.  Between  the  house 
and  the  bridge  Mr  Lamb's  spring  wagon  was  standing. 
The  flood  caught  it  up  but  the  hill  tossed  it  back,  and 
when  the  water  subsided  it  was  found  about  twenty 
yards  from  where  it  originally  stood,  and  strange  to  say, 
it  was  almost  uninjured.  Indeed,  it  is  still  in  such  good 
condition  that  I  rode  on  it  on  Thursday  morning  from 
the  dam  to  Johnstown,  a  distance  of  twelve  miles  over 
the  roughest  road  in  Christendom,  excepting  only  the 
other  roads  in  Cambria  county.  Taking  a  fresh  start 
after  its  contact  with  the  hill  below  Lamb's  house,  the 
flood  swept  onward  down  the  South  Fork  Valley  and 
then  along  the  Coneraaugh  and  through  Johnstown. 
At  many  points  there  are  sharp  angles  formed  by  the 


68  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

hills  in  the  winding  valleys,  at  every  one  of  which  the 
mad  flood  repeated  its  angry  and  destructive  contor- 
tions'. 

A    NICE   SENSATION   SPOILED. 

"  One  of  the  reportorial  brotherhood,  leaning  a  little 
towards  imagination  and  sensation  had  gotten  up  a  story 
of  a  new  Paul  Revere,  who  had  come  riding  along  on  a 
foam-bedecked  steed  and  warned  all  neighbors  to  fly 
from  the  flood,  and  who  finally  succumbed  with  his  noble 
charger.  It  was  a  soul-stirring  story,  an  excellent  story 
for  a  dime  novel  or  some  other  elegant  publication.  It 
was  a  nice  story,  but  then  came  the  fellows,  who  are 
quick  at  figures  and  who  have  spoiled  many  other  nice 
stories  before,  and  have  proven  that  they  deserve  no 
credit  That  young  man  could  not  have  done  it,  even 
if  he  had  any  intention  to  do  so.  The  flood  was  too 
fast  for  any  horseman  and  there  was  no  road  in  the 
Conemaugh  Valley  over  which  a  horseman  could  go. 
But  while  this  new  Paul  Revere  in  this  famous  creation 
made  by  a  few  strokes  of  a  reporter's  pencil  is  a  myth — 
the  reporter,  it  will  be  remembered,  killed  him  in  the 
flood  that  he  might  not  rise  up  and  bear  testimony  against 
a  false  witness — there  were  many  little  Pauls.  The  South 
Forks  people  had  watchers  at  the  dam  during  the  fatal 
Friday  who  reported  its  condition  from  time  to  time.  As 
it  was  certain  that  the  dam  would  break  should  the  water 
flow  over  the  embankment,  two  boys  were  stationed  at 
the  bend  in  the  road  near  it  to  give  notice  of  the  impend- 
ing calamity.  These  were  Baker's  boy  and  Gaskill's 
boy.  Of  these  Baker's  boy  was  the  last  to  come  down 
bearing  intelligence  of  the  fact  that  was  a  sure  prelude 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  69 

to  disaster.  But  he  was  in  no  danger.  He  had  the  start 
of  the  flood.  Besides  the  South  Fork  Valley  road  at 
most  points  between  the  dam  and  village  is  high  above 
the  highest  crest  obtained  by  the  flood  wave.  Below  the 
village,  between  South  Fork  and  Conemaugh,  there  was 
no  road  at  all  except  the  tracks  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad.  Below  Conemaugh  there  was  no  chance  for  a 
Paul  Revere.  Warnings  were  given  in  abundance,  but 
there  was  no  real  notice  except  that  afforded  by  the  com- 
ing of  the  flood.  Many  persons  were  drowned  who  had 
no  notice  at  all — they  were  in  the  water  before  they  knew 
the  flood  was  coming. 

THE  DISASTER. — DOWN  THE  CONEMAUGH. 

"  When  the  flood  reached  the  village  of  South  Fork 
the  destruction  of  human  life  began.  At  the  station  in 
the  village  an  eastbound  train  was  standing  within  hear- 
ing distance  of  the  roar  of  the  coming  waters.  It  was 
able  to  pull  out  in  time  and  escape.  At  some  distance 
from  the  station  down  the  Conemaugh  Valley  stood  an 
extra  freight  train  waiting  orders.  The  engineer  and 
conductor  were  in  the  tower,  the  fireman  and  flagman 
were  on  the  engine  and  two  brakemen  were  asleep  in  the 
caboose.  The  men  in  the  tower  heard  the  roar  and  saw 
the  coming  flood.  Crying  to  the  brakemen,  but  failing 
to  rouse  them,  they  hastily  detached  the  engine  and 
fled  before  the  mountain  of  water.  Before  them  was 
danger,  but  behind  them  was  certain  death.  As  they 
dashed  down  the  valley  the  flood  made  a  momentary 
pause  at  the  village  of  South  Fork.  There  is  a  bend  in 
the  Conemaugh  river  at  its  confluence  with  the  South 
Fork  creek,  and  the  flood  dashed  itself  against  the  hill- 


70  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

side  in  front  of  it.  The  waters  were  thrown  back  upon 
the  hills  on  the  south  bank  of  the  creek.  This  was  an 
interruption,  but  with  an  angry  swirl  the  great  wave 
righted  itself  and  swung  down  the  valley  after  the  flying 
engine.  Steam  soon  proved  to  be  no  match  in  speed 
against  water.  The  stout  stone  viaduct  was  snapped 
and  dashed  to  fragments  as  if  it  had  been  a  pipe  of  clay. 
Obstacles  only  stood  in  the  way  to  become  the  sport  of 
the  wave.  Across  the  bridge,  on  the  track  of  the 
detached  engine,  was  a  freight  train  barring  the  way. 
As  soon  as  the  bridge  was  crossed  the  lever  was  reversed 
and  the  men  jumped  and  ran  for  their  lives  up  the  hill- 
side. The  flood  was  close  upon  them,  and  they  had 
scarcely  got  above  the  water  line  when  it  lifted  up  the 
engine  as  if  it  had  been  a  soap  bubble,  engulfed  the 
freight  and  tore  up  the  tracks.  Then  on  it  went,  mak- 
ing a  mad  rush  for  the  suburbs  of  the  city  below. 

IN   JOHNSTOWN. 

"  The  course  of  the  Conemaugh  river  between  South 
Fork  and  Johnstown  is  a  tortuous  one,  and  the  flood  in 
its  sweep  was  only  thrown  back  from  one  hill  to  be 
dashed  against  another.  The  obstacles  and  interrup- 
tions only  seemed  to  add  to  its  fierce  energy,  and  when 
the  town  of  Conemaugh  was  reached  it  was  denuded 
almost  in  an  instant  of  every  habitation  that  had  shel- 
tered a  populous  community.  Below  was  the  doomed 
city  of  Johnstown.  The  inhabitants  were  oblivious  of 
the  impending  calamity.  The  merchant  was  in  his  store 
bartering  away  his  goods ;  the  merchants  were  at  their 
daily  toil  in  the  shops ;  the  house-wives  were  going 
about  their  household  duties.  That  there  was  danger 
was  known,  but  there  had  been  danger  before  more  than 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  71 

once,  and  it  passed  away  without  a  calamity.  The  previ- 
ous cries  of  "Wolf!"  made  the  cry  ineffective  now  that 
the  wolf  was  at  the  door.  Only  the  timid  and  the  pru- 
dent escaped  the  coming  flood  by  going  to  the  hillsides 
in  time.  For  the  others,  the  only  notice  was  the  ring- 
ing of  the  bell  at  the  Cambria  Iron  Works,  but  so  brief 
was  this  notice  that  the  bell  had  not  stopped  ringing 
when  the  flood  came.  There  was  no  time  for  even  the 
bell-ringer  to  escape.  The  warning  came  too  late,  and 
only  a  few  minutes  elapsed  before  Johnstown  was  swept 
away,  the  angel  of  death  holding  his  sable  wings  over 
the  engulfed  city. 

"  To  those  on  the  hillside  the  sight  was  an  awful  one. 
Before  the  bell  was  rung  there  were  few  people  in  the 
streets.  At  the  first  tap  there  was  a  panic,  and  the 
frightened  inhabitants  rushed  into  the  thoroughfaresj 
trying  to  make  their  way  to  the  hillsides.  A  man  who 
was  on  Johnstown  Hill  at  the  time  told  me  that  he  had 
a  view  of  Main  street  from  end  to  end.  In  an  instant  the 
deserted  street  became  black  with  people  running  for 
their  lives.  An  instant  later  the  flood  came  and  licked 
them  up  with  one  eager  and  ferocious  lap.  The  whole 
city  was  one  surging  and  whirling  mass  of  water,  which 
swept  away  house  after  house  and  block  after  block  and 
street  after  street  with  a  rapidity  that  even  the  eye  could 
not  follow.  It  was  a  sight  that,  once  seen,  can  never  be 
forgotten — a  sight  to  be  remembered  only  as  a  terrible 
dream. 

"  The  course  of  the  flood  in  Johnstown  was  apparently 
as  unreasoning  as  the  freaks  of  a  madman  and  as  cun- 
ningly devised  for  deadly  effect  as  the  blows  of  an  armed 
maniac  running  amuck.  Into  the  city  the  great  wave 
rushed,  sweeping  everything  before  it.  The  course  of 


72  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

the  Conemaugh  is  a  gentle  curve  around  Prospect  Hill. 
A  part  of  the  wave  seemed  disposed  to  follow  the  course 
of  the  stream  while  the  other  part  was  intent  upon  dash- 
ing into  and  through  the  heart  of  the  town.  The  con- 
flicting forces  of  the  element,  however,  kept  together 
until  the  point  between  Franklin  and  Market  streets  was 
reached.  Here  they  separated,  one  current  sweeping  along 
the  course  of  the  Conemaugh  to  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road bridge  and  the  other  making  the  dash  through  the 
town.  Thus  the  flood  had  two  prongs,  one  as  destructive  as 
the  other.  The  gorge  at  the  bridge  threw  the  Conemaugh 
current  back  upon  the  town  along  the  course  of  Stony 
creek,  while  the  other  prong  made  a  mad  rush  upon  the 
western  hills  and  was  thrown  back  to  meet  the  receding 
waters  from  the  bridge.  At  this  moment  the  whole  of 
the  Johnstown  valley  presented  the  appearance  of  a 
mountain  lake  lashed  by  a  tornado  that  was  itself  a  con- 
tortion— the  whole  city  was  a  whirlpool,  even  the  largest 
edifices  being  tossed  like  toys  by  the  angry  eddies  that 
made  escape  for  the  imprisoned  inmates  of  floating 
houses  impossible.  Many  of  the  houses  took  fire  from 
the  stoves  as  they  were  hurled  from  crest  to  crest  of  the 
angry  waves,  and  it  is  supposed  that  it  was  to  this  cause 
— the  burning  fires  in  the  houses — that  the  conflagration 
in  the  gorge,  which  added  so  much  to  the  horrors  of  the 
disaster,  was  due. 

"  When  the  work  of  destruction  and  death  in  Johnstown 
was  complete  and  the  great  wave  rolled  down  the  Cone- 
maugh Valley,  bearing  with  its  freight  of  human  bodies, 
some  of  which  it  carried  as  far  as  the  Allegeheny  and 
the  Ohio,  the  waters  rapidly  subsided  in  the  city,  reveal- 
ing a  condition  that  can  only  be  described  as  appalling. 
The  scenes  that  then  confronted  the  vision  of  the  surviv- 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  73 

ors  would  have  been  thought  impossible  before  the  flood 
had  come  and  gone." 

JOHNSTOWN  BEFORE  AND  AFTER  THE  DISASTER. 

In  turning  from  the  Johnstown  that  was  to  the  Johns- 
town that  is  the  heart  sickens  at  the  prospect,  writes  a 
correspondent.  Everywhere  the  marks  of  the  devastat- 
ing element  reach  the  eye.  Instead  of  compactly-built 
streets  intersecting  each  other  and  a  vista  of  cheerful 
yards  and  gardens  there  are  long  stretches  of  sand  and 
gravel.  One  of  these  follows  the  winding  course  of  the 
Conemaugh.  The  other  was  made  by  the  tongue  of 
flood  that  kept  straight  on  by  the  impetus  given  it  in  the 
Conemaugh  Valley.  These  tongues  of  wave,  separating 
like  the  two  prongs,  had  an  effect  as  salutary  as  the  cir- 
cumstance in  itself  was  singular.  Some  property  and 
many  lives  were  saved  in  consequence.  The  force  of  the 
current  being  divided  was  diverted  from  the  heart  of  the 
town,  and  many  buildings  are  still  standing  in  a  part  of 
Main  street.  They  are  wrecked,  some  almost  wholly, 
others  only  slightly,  at  least  in  appearance.  Into  this 
space,  so  curiously  preserved  from  utter  ruin,  many  float- 
ing buildings  jammed,  some  of  them  with  their  living 
human  inmates.  Some  of  these  were  saved,  as  were 
many  of  the  residents  in  that  section  of  the  city.  Had 
these  buildings  gone  many  additional  lives  would  have 
been  sacrificed,  and  unless  the  bridge  itself  had  shared 
the  fate  of  the  rest  of  the  town  the  gorge  that  began 
when  the  train  fell  over  the  bridge  would  have  been  even 
greater  and  more  unmanageable  than  it  now  is.  As  it 
is,  it  is  interesting  as  an  agent  of  mercy  as  well  as  a 
remarkable  example  of  partial  escape  from  the  fury  of 
the  flood. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

ONE  of  the  most  terrible  sights  was  the  gorge  at  the 
railroad  bridge.  This  gorge  consisted  of  debris  of  all 
kinds  welded  into  an  almost  solid  mass.  Here  were  the 
charred  timbers  of  houses  and  even  now  the  charred  and 
mutilated  remains  of  human  beings.  The  fire  at  this 
point,  which  lasted  until  June  3d  and  had  still  some  of 
its  vitality  left  on  the  5th,  was  one  of  the  incidents 
of  the  Johnstown  disaster  that  will  become  his- 
toric. The  story  has  not  been  and  even  now  cannot  be 
fully  told.  One  could  not  look  at  it  without  a  shock  to 
his  sensibilities.  So  tangled  and  unyielding  was  the 
mass  that  even  dynamite  had  little  effect  upon  it.  Oiie 
deplorable  effect,  however,  was  to  dismember  the  few 
parts  of  human  bodies  wedged  in  the  mass  that  the  ruth- 
less flood  left  whole. 

From  the  western  end  of  the  railroad  bridge  the  view 
was  but  a  prelude  to  the  views  that  were  to  follow. 
Looking  across  the  gorge  the  first  object  the  eye  caught 
in  the  ruined  town  is  the  Melville  school,  standing  as  a 
guardian  over  the  dead — a  solitary  sentinel  left  on  the 
field  after  the  battle.  Still  further  on  and  near  the  cen- 
tre of  the  old  town  were  the  offices  and  stores  of  the 
Cambria  Iron  Company.  Beyond  and  around  both 
buildings,  were  sand  flats,  mud  flats  until  the  2Qth  of 
May,  the  almost  navigable  water  of  the  flood  itself  until 
the  2(1  of  June,  the  most  populous  and  busy  part  of  the 
city  until  the  3ist  of  May.  Part  of  the  ground  was  cov- 
(74) 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  75 

ered  by  a  part  of  the  shops  of  the  Cambria  Company. 
Not  a  vestige  of  these  remain. 

UNHEEDED   WARNINGS. 

For  several  years  has  the  strength  of  the  dam  been  a 
subject  of  discussion  among  the  people  of  the  Cone- 
maugh  Valley,  and  it  was  predicted  that  some  time  it 
would  succumb  to  the  tremendous  pressure  behind  it 
and  give  the  lake  free  refn  in  a  dance  of  death  and 
destruction.  But  the  many  laughed,  and  the  few  who 
were  fearful  held  their  peace.  When  the  great  storm  of 
Friday  came,  the  dam  was  again  a  source  of  uneasiness, 
and  early  in  the  morning  the  people  of  Johnstown  were 
warned  that  the  dam  was  weakening.  They  had  heard 
the  same  warning  too  often,  however,  to  be  impressed, 
and  many  jeered  at  their  informants.  Some  of  those  that 
jeered  were  before  nightfall  scattered  along  the  banks  of 
the  Conemaugh,  cold  in  death,  or  met  their  fate  in  the 
blazing  pile  of  wrecked  houses  wedged  together  at  the  big 
stone  bridge.  Only  a  few  heeded  the  warning,  and  these 
made  their  way  to  the  hillsides,  where  they  were  safe. 

Early  in  the  day  the  flood  caused  by  the  heavy  rains 
swept  through  the  streets  of  Johnstown.  Every  little 
mountain  stream  was  swollen  by  the  rains ;  rivulets 
became  creeks  and  creeks  were  turned  into  rivers.  The 
Conemaugh,  with  a  bed  too  narrow  to  hold  its  greatly 
increased  body  of  water,  overflowed  its  banks,  and  the 
damage  caused  by  this  overflow  alone  would  have  been 
large.  But  there  was  more  to  come,  and  the  results  were 
so  appalling  that  there  lived  not  a  human  being  who  was 
likely  to  anticipate  them. 

THE    BREAKING   OF   THE    BOOM. 

At  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  resistless  flood  tore 


76  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

away  the  huge  lumber  boom  on  Stony  creek.  This 
was  the  real  beginning  of  the  end.  'The  enormous  mass 
of  logs  was  hurled  down  upon  the  doomed  town.  The 
lines  of  the  two  water  courses  were  by  this  time 
obliterated,  and  Stony  creek  and  the  Conemaugh  river 
were  raging  seas.  The  great  logs  levelled  everything 
before  them,  crushing  frame  houses  like  eggshells  and 
going  on  unchecked  until  the  big  seven-arch  stone 
bridge  over  the  Conemaugh  river  just  below  Johnstown 
was  reached. 

Had  the  logs  passed  this  bridge  Johnstown  might  have 
been  spared  much  of  its  horror.  There  were  already 
dead  and  dying,  and  homes  had  already  been  swept 
away,  but  the  dead  could  only  be  counted  by  dozens  and 
not  yet  by  thousands.  Wedged  fast  at  the  bridge,  the  logs 
formed  an  impenetrable  barrier.  People  had  moved  to 
the  second  floor  of  their  houses  and  hoped  that  the  flood 
might  subside.  There  was  no  longer  a  chance  to  get 
away,  and  had  they  known  what  was  in  store  for  them 
the  contemplation  of  their  fate  would  have  been  enough 
to  make  them  stark  mad.  Only  a  few  hours  had  elapsed 
from  the  time  of  the  breaking  of  the  lumber  boom  when 
the  waters  of  Conemaugh  lake  rushed  down  upon  them. 
The  scoffers  realized  their  folly.  The  dam  had  given 
way,  and  the  immense  body  of  water  which  had  rested 
in  a  basin  five  miles  long,  two  miles  wide  and  seventy 
feet  deep  was  let  loose  to  begin  its  work  of  destruction. 

THE    DELUGE    COMES. 

The  towering  wall  of  water  swooped  down  upon 
Johnstown  with  a  force  that  carried  everything  before  it. 
Had  it  been  able  to  pass  through  the.  big  stone  bridge  a 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  77 

portion  of  Johnstown  might  have  been  saved.  The 
rampart  of  logs,  however,  checked  the  torrent  and  half 
the  houses  of  the  town  were  lifted  from  their  founda- 
tions and  hurled  against  it.  This  backed  the  water  up 
into  the  town,  and  as  there  had  to  be  an  outlet  some- 
where, the  river  made  a  new  channel  through  the  heart 
of  the  lower  part  of  the  city.  Again  and  again  did  the 
flood  hurl  itself  against  the  bridge,  and  each  wave 
carried  with  it  houses,  furniture  and  human  beings.  The 
bridge  stood  firm,  but  the  railway  embankment  gave  way, 
and  some  fifty  people  were  carried  down  to  their  deaths 
in  the  new  break.  Through  this  new  outlet  the  waters 
were  diverted  in  the  direction  of  the  Cambria  Iron 
Works,  a  mile  below,  and  in  a  moment  the  great  build- 
ings of  a  plant  valued  at  $5,000,000,  were  engulfed  and 
laid  low.  Here  had  gathered  a  number  of  iron  workers, 
who  felt  that  they  were  out  of  the  reach  of  the  flood,  and 
almost  before  they  realized  their  peril  they  were  swept 
away  into  the  seething  torrent. 

ROASTED   TO  DEATH. 

It  was  now  night,  and  darkness  added  to  the  terror  of 
the  situation.  Then  came  flames  to  make  the  calamity 
all  the  more  appalling.  Hundreds  of  buildings  had  been 
piled  up  against  the  stone  bridge.  The  inmates  of  but 
few  of  them  had  had  time  to  escape.  Just  how  many 
people  were  imprisoned  in  that  mass  of  wreckage  may 
never  be  known,  but  the  number  was  estimated  at 
between  1000  and  2000.  The  wreckage  was  piled  to  a 
height  of  fifty  feet,  and  suddenly  flames  began  leaping 
up  from  the  summit.  A  stove  had  set  fire  to  that  part 
of  the  wreck  above  the  water,  and  the  scene  that  was 


78  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

then  witnessed  is  beyond  description.  Shrieks  and 
prayers  from  the  unhappy  beings  imprisoned  in  the 
wrecked  houses  pierced  the  air,  but  little  could  be  done. 
Men,  women  and  children,  held  down  by  timbers,  watched 
with  indescribable  agony  the  flames  creep  slowly  toward 
them  until  the  heat  scorched  their  faces,  and  then  they 
vere  slowly  roasted  to  death. 

Those  who  were  held  fast  in  the  wreck  by  an  arm  or  a 
leg  begged  pitiously  that  the  imprisoned  limb  be  cut  off. 
Some  succeeded  in  getting  loose  with  mangled  limbs, 
and  one  man  cut  off  his  arm  that  he  might  get  away. 
Those  who  were  able  worked  like  demons  to  save  the 
unfortunates  from  the  flames,  but  hundreds  were  burned 
to  death. 

SWEPT  TO  THEIR  DOOM. 

Meanwhile  Johnstown  had  been  been  literally  wiped 
from  the  face  of  the  earth,  Cambria  City  was  swept 
away  and  Conemaugh  borough  was  a  thing  of  the  past. 
The  little  village  of  Millville,  with  a  population  of  one 
thousand,  had  nothing  left  of  it  but  the  school-house 
and  the  stone  buildings  of  the  Cambria  Iron  Company. 
Woodvale  was  gone  and  South  Fork  wrecked.  Hun- 
dreds of  people  were  drowned  in  their  houses,  hundreds 
were  swept  away  in  their  dwellings  and  met  death  in  the 
debris  that  was  whirled  madly  about  on  the  surface  of 
the  flood  ;  hundreds,  as  has  been  said,  were  burned,  and 
hundreds  who  sought  safety  on  floating  driftwood  were 
overwhelmed  by  the  flood  or  washed  to  death  against 
obstructions.  The  instances  of  heroism  and  self- 
sacrifice  were  never  excelled,  perhaps  not  equalled,  on  a 
battle-field.  Men  rather  than  save  themselves  alone 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  79 

died  nobly  with  their  families,  and  mothers  willingly 
gave  up  their  lives  rather  than  abandon  their  children. 

HER    LAST    MESSAGE. 

"At  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,"  said  Electrician 
Bender,  of  the  Western  Union  at  Pittsburg,  "  the  girl 
operator  at  Johnstown  was  cheerfully  ticking  away; 
she  soon  had  to  abandon  the  office  on  the  first  floor 
because  the  water  was  three  feet  deep  there.  She  said 
she  was  wiring  from  the  second  story  and  the  water  was 
gaining  steadily.  She  was  frightened,  and  said  that 
many  houses  around  were  flooded.  This  was  evidently 
before  the  dam  broke,  for  our  man  here  said  something 
encouraging  to  her,  and  she  was  talking  back  as  only  a 
cheerful  girl  operator  can  when  the  receiver's  skilled 
ears  caught  a  sound  of  the  wire  made  by  no  human 
hands.  The  wires  had  grounded  or  the  house  had 
been  swept  away  in  the  flood,  no  one  knows  which 
now.  At  three  o'clock  the  girl  was  there  and  at  3.07 
we  might  as  well  have  asked  the  grave  to  answer  us." 

EXAMPLES  OF  BRAVERY. 

Edward  Deck,  a  young  railroad  man  of  Lockport,  saw 
an  old  man  floating  down  the  river  on  a  tree  trunk, 
with  agonized  face  and  streaming  gray  hair.  Deck 
plunged  into  the  torrent  and  brought  the  old  man  safely 
ashore.  Scarcely  had  he  done  so,  when  the  upper  story 
of  a  house  floated  by  on  which  Mrs.  Adams,  of  Cambria, 
and  her  two  children  were  both  seen.  Deck  plunged  in 
again,  and  while  breaking  through  the  tin  roof  of  the 
house  cut  an  artery  in  his  left  wrist,  but  though  weak- 
ened with  loss  of  blood,  he  succeeded  in  saving  both 
mother  and  children. 


80  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

J.  W.  Esch,  a  brave  railroad  employe,  saved  sixteen 
lives  at  Nineveh. 

At  Bolivar  a  man,  woman  and  child  were  seen  float- 
ing down  in  a  lot  of  drift.  The  mass  of  debris  com- 
menced to  part,  and  by  desperate  efforts  the  husband 
and  father  succeeded  in  getting  his  wife  and  little  one  on 
a  floating  tree.  Just  then  the  tree  washed  under  the 
bridge  and  a  rope  was  thrown  out.  It  fell  upon  the 
man's  shoulders.  He  saw  at  a  glance  that  he  could  not 
save  his  dear  ones,  so  he  threw  the  means  of  safety  to 
one  side  and  gripped  in  his  arms  those  who  were  with 
him.  A  moment  later  the  tree  struck  a  floating  house. 
It  turned  over,  and  in  a  second  the  three  persons  were 
in  the  seething  waters,  being  carried  to  their  death. 

C.  W.  Hoppenstall,  of  Lincoln  avenue,  East  End, 
Pittsburg,  distinguished  himself  by  his  bravery.  He  was 
a  messenger  on  the  mail  train  which  had  to  turn  back  at 
Sang  Hollow.  As  the  train  passed  a  point  where  the 
water  was  full  of  struggling  persons,  a  woman  and  child 
floated  in  near  shore.  The  train  was  stopped  and  Hop- 
penstall undressed,  jumped  into  the  water,  and  in  two 
trips  saved  both  mother  and  child. 

THE   TIDAL   WAVE   AT   BOLIVAR. 

The  special  train  pulled  in  at  Bolivar  at  11.30  and 
trainmen  were  notified  that  further  progress  was  impossi- 
ble. The  greatest  excitement  prevailed  at  this  place,  and 
parties  of  citizens  were  all  the  time  endeavoring  to  save 
the  poor  unfortunates  that  were  being  hurled  to  eternity 
on  the  rushing  torrent. 

The  tidal  wave  struck  Bolivar  just  after  dark,  and  in 
five  minutes  the  Conemaugh  rose  from  six  to  forty  feet 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  8 1 

and  the  waters  spread  out  over  the  whole  country.  Soon 
houses  began  floating  down,  and  clinging  to  the  debris 
were  men,  women  and  children,  shrieking  for  aid.  A 
large  number  of  citizens  at  once  gathered  on  the  county 
bridge  and  they  were  reinforced  by  a  number  from  Gar- 
field,  a  town  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river.  They 
brought  a  number  of  ropes  and  these  were  thrown  into 
the  boiling  waters  as  persons  drifted  by  in  efforts  to  save 
some  poor  beings.  For  half  an  hour  all  efforts  were 
fruitless  until  at  last,  when  the  rescuers  were  about  giv- 
ing up  all  hope,  a  little  boy  astride  a  shingle  roof  mana- 
ged to  catch  hold  of  one  of  the  ropes.  He  caught  it 
under  his  left  arm  and  was  thrown  violently  against  an 
abutment,  but  managed  to  keep  hold  and  was  success- 
fully pulled  on  to  the  bridge,  amid  the  cheers  of  the 
onlookers.  His  name  was  Hessler  and  his  rescuer  was 
a  train  hand  named  Carney.  The  lad  was  taken  to  the 
town  of  Garfield  and  cared  for  in  the  home  of  J.  P.  Rob- 
inson. The  boy  was  about  16  years  old. 

His  story  of  the  frightful  calamity  is  as  follows : 
"  With  my  father,  I  was  spending  the  day  at  my  grand- 
father's house  in  Cambria  City.  In  the  house  at  the 
time  were  Theodore,  Edward  and  John  Kintz,  and  John 
Kintz,  Jr.,  Miss  Mary  Kintz,  Mrs.  Mary  Kintz,  wife  of 
John  Kintz,  Jr.,  Miss  Tracy  Kintz,  Miss  Rachel  Smith, 
John  Hirsch,  four  children,  my  father  and  myself. 
Shortly  after  5  o'clock  there  was  a  noise  of  roaring 
waters  and  screams  of  people.  We  looked  out  the  door 
and  saw  persons  running.  My  father  told  us  not  to 
mind  as  the  waters  would  not  rise  further.  But  soon 
we  saw  houses  being  swept  away  and  then  we  ran  to  the 
floor  above.  The  house  was  three -stories,  and  we  were 
6 


82  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

at  last  forced  to  the  top  one.  In  my  fright  I  jumped  on 
the  bed.  It  was  an  old  fashioned  one  with  heavy  posts. 
The  water  kept  rising  and  my  bed  was  soon  afloat. 
Gradually  it  was  lifted  up.  The  air  in  the  room  grew 
close  and  the  house  was  moving.  Still  the  bed  kept 
rising  and  pressed  the  ceiling.  At  last  the  post  pushed 
the  plaster.  It  yielded  and  a  section  of  the  roof  gave 
way.  Then  suddenly  I  found  myself  on  the  roof  and 
was  being  carried  down  stream.  After  a  little  this  roof 
commenced  to  part  and  I  was  afraid  I  was  going  to  be 
drowned,  but  just  then  another  house  with  a  single  roof 
floated  by  and  I  managed  to  crawl  on  it  and  floated 
down  until  nearly  dead  with  cold,  when  I  was  saved. 
After  I  was  freed  from  the  house  I  did  not  see  my  father. 
My  grandfather  was  on  a  tree  but  he  must  have  been 
drowned  as  the  waters  were  rising  fast.  John  Kintz,  Jr., 
was  also  on  a  tree.  Miss  Mary  Kintz  and  Mrs.  Mary 
Kintz  I  saw  drowned.  Miss  Smith  was  also  drowned. 
John  Hirsch  was  in  a  tree,  but  the  four  children  were 
drowned.  The  scenes  were  terrible.  Live  bodies  and 
corpses  were  floating  down  with  me  and  away  from  me. 
I  would  hear  persons  shriek  and  then  they  would  dis- 
appear. All  along  the  line  were  people  who  were  try- 
ing to  save  us,  but  they  could  do  nothing  and  only  a 
few  were  caught." 

The  boy's  story  is  but  one  incident  and  shows  what 
happened  to  one  family.  God  only  knows  what  has 
happened  to  the  hundreds  who  were  in  the  path  of  the 
rushing  water.  It  is  impossible  to  get  anything  in  the 
way  of  news,  save  meagre  details. 

ANOTHER    SCENE   OF  HORROR. 

An  eye-witness  at  Bolivar  Block  Station  tells  a  story 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  83 

of  unparalleled  horror  which  occurred  at  the  lower 
bridge  which  crosses  the  Conemaugh  at  this  point.  A 
young  man  and  two  women  were  seen  coming  down  the 
river  on  a  part  of  a  floor.  At  the  upper  bridge  a  rope 
was  thrown  them.  This  they  all  failed  to  catch. 
Between  the  two  bridges  the  man  was  noticed  to  point 
towards  the  elder  woman,  who,  it  is  supposed,  was  his 
mother.  He  was  then  seen  to  instruct  the  women  how 
to  catch  the  rope  which  was  being  lowered  from  the 
other  bridge.  Down  came  the  raft  with  a  rush.  The 
brave  man  stood  with  his  arms  around  the  two  women. 
As  they  swept  under  the  bridge  he  reached  up  and 
seized  the  rope.  He  was  jerked  violently  away  from  the 
two  women,  who  failed  to  get  a  hold  on  the  life  line. 
Seeing  that  they  would  not  be  rescued  he  dropped  the 
rope  and  fell  back  on  the  raft  which  floated  on  down. 
The  current  washed  the  frail  craft  in  towards  the  bank. 
The  young  man  was  enabled  to  seize  hold  of  a  branch 
of  a  tree.  The  young  man  aided  the  two  women  to  get 
up  into  the  tree.  He  held  on  with  his  hands  and  rested 
his  feet  on  a  pile  of  driftwood.  A  piece  of  floating  debris 
struck  the  drift,  sweeping  it  away.  The  man  hung  with 
his  body  immersed  in  the  water.  A  pile  of  drift  soon 
collected  and  he  was  enabled  to  get  another  secure  foot- 
ing. Up  the  river  there  was  a  sudden  crash  and  a  sec- 
tion of  the  bridge  was  swept  away  and  floated  down  the 
stream,  striking  the  tree  and  washing  it  away.  All 
three  were  thrown  into  the  water  and  were  drowned 
before  the  eyes  of  the  horrified  spectators  just  opposite 
the  town  of  Bolivar. 

REFUSED  TO  DESERT  HER  CHILDREN. 

Early  in  the  evening  a  woman  with  her  two  children 


84  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

were  seen  to  pass  under  the  bridge  at  Bolivar,  clinging 
to  the  roof  of  a  coalhouse.  A  rope  was  lowered  to  her, 
but  she  shook  her  head  and  refused  to  desert  the  child- 
ren. It  was  rumored  that  all  three  were  saved  at  Coke- 
ville,  a  few  miles  below  Bolivar.  A  later  report  from 
Lockport  says  that  the  residents  succeeded  in  rescuing 
five  people  from  the  flood,  two  women  and  three  men. 
One  man  succeeded  in  getting  out  of  the  water  unaided. 
They  were  kindly  taken  care  of  by  the  people  of  the 
town. 

A  little  girl  passed  under  the  bridge  just  before  dark. 
She  was  kneeling  on  a  part  of  a  floor  and  had  her  hands 
clasped  as  if  in  prayer.  Every  effort  was  made  to  save 
her,  but  they  all  proved  futile.  A  railroader  who  was 
standing"  by  remarked  that  the  piteous  appearance  of 
the  little  waif  brought  tears  to  his  eyes.  All  night  long 
the  crowd  stood  about  the  ruins  of  the  bridge,  which 
had  been  swept  away  at  Bolivar.  The  water  rushed  past 
with  a  roar,  carrying  with  it  parts  of  houses,  furniture 
and  trees.  The  flood  had  evidently  spent  its  force  up 
the  valley.  No  more  living  persons  were  being  carried 
past.  Watchers  with  lanterns  remained  along  the  banks 
until  daybreak,  when  the  first  view  of  the  awful  devasta- 
tion of  the  flood  was  witnessed. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

MORE  than  one  brave  man  risked  his  life  in  trying  to 
save  those  in  the  flood.  Some  details  of  heroic  action 
are  brought  to  light.  In  many  instances  the  floaters  dis- 
played remarkable  courage,  and  gave  their  chances  for 
rescue  to  friends  with  them.  Some  stood  back  for 
mothers  and  were  lost  while  the  parents  were  taken  out. 
Many  a  dear  boy  went  down  to  a  watery  grave  that  a 
sister  or  father  might  be  saved.  Such  instances  of  self- 
sacrifice  in  the  face  of  fearful  danger  were  numerous,  and 
it  shows  conclusively  that  the  heroes  are  not  all  dead. 

REMARKABLE  STORIES  OF  ESCAPE. 

Almost  every  one  has  a  story  of  remarkable  escape. 
On  a  train,  Michael  Ronesen,  an  Irishman,  tells  a  won- 
derful story  of  his  escape.  He  says  he  was  walking 
down  Main  street  when  he  heard  a  rumbling  noise,  and, 
looking  around,  he  imagined  it  was  a  cloud,  but  in  a 
minute  the  water  was  upon  him.  He  floated  with  the 
tide  for  some  time,  when  he  was  struck  with  some  float- 
ing timber  and  borne  underneath  the  water ;  when  he 
came  up  he  was  struck  again,  and  at  last  he  was  caught 
by  a  lightning  rod  and  held  there  for  over  two  hours, 
when  he  was  finally  rescued. 

Mrs.  Ann  Williams  tells  a  rather  remarkable  story. 
She  was  sitting  sewing  when  the  flood  came  on.  She 
heard  some  people  crying  and  jumped  out  of  the  window 
and  succeeded  in  getting  on  the  roof  of  an  adjoining 
house.  Under  the  roof  she  heard  the  cries  of  men  and 

(85) 


86  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

women,  and  saw  two  men  and  women  with  their  heads 
just  above  the  water  crying  :  "  For  God's  sake  either  kill 
us  outright  or  rescue  us."  Mrs.  Williams  cried  for  help 
for  the  drowning  people,  but  none  came,  and  she  saw 
them  give  up  one  by  one. 

DEEDS  OF  HEROISM. 

The  sad  story  of  the  Conemaugh  is  not  without  its 
deeds  of  heroism.  The  appalling  scenes  of  horror 
developed  daring  courage  where  least  expected,  while 
every-day  heroes  in  the  midst  of  the  terrifying  scenes 
usually  degenerated  into  arrant  cowards. 

Mothers  cooly  sacrificed  themselves  to  the  fury  of  the 
flood  or  fire  to  save  the  lives  of  their  children  and 
loved  ones.  Not  infrequently  some  pale-faced  woman, 
clinging  with  her  child  to  floating  debris  and  realizing 
that  the  support  was  too  frail  for  two,  would  be  seen  to 
lift  her  precious  burthen  high  upon  the  floating  debris, 
and,  with  a  hasty  kiss,  bidding  farewell  to  all  that  bound 
her  to  the  world,  sink  beneath  the  waves. 

A  MAN  WHO  SAVED  22  LIVES. 

Edward  C.  Will  is  a  young  foundryman  of  Cambria, 
27  years  old,  whom  no  one  ever  suspected  of  possessing 
more  than  ordinary  courage.  When  the  flood  was  at 
its  height  and  people  were  floating  down  the  rushing 
torrent  in  hundreds,  Will  rushed  to  his  boat,  and,  sense- 
less to  the  pleadings  of  wife  and  relatives,  shoved  his 
frail  craft  far  out  into  the  angry  current.  Gilding  rap- 
idly alongside  a  floating  roof  upon  which  a  woman 
and  two  children  were  kneeling  with  blanched  faces  and 
stony  stare,  he  skillfully  evaded  the  obstructions  that 
every  minute  threatened  to  crush  the  craft,  and  lifting 


THE  JOHXSTOWN  FLOOD.  87 

the  terrorized  creatures  to  his  boat,  shot  across  the  cur- 
rent back  to  the  bank  whence  he  came. 

A  shout  of  applause  swelled  from  the  throng  that 
lined  the  bank,  but,  unmoved  by  plaudits,  young  Will 
repeated  the  perilous  journey,  not  one,  but  seven  times, 
until  22  lives  had  been  saved  by  his  indomitable  energy. 
The  next  day,  when  most  of  Johnstown  was  still  under 
water,  Will  ascended  the  stream  to  the  desolate  city  and 
again  distinguished  himself  by  many  acts  of  heroism 
and  endurance.  Tribute  too  fulsome  cannot  be  paid  to 
his  noble  character,  but  after  all,  among  the  heroes  that 
these  strange  scenes  developed,  he  is  only  one  of  the 
many. 

HEARTRENDING    RECITALS   BY   SURVIVORS. 

James  P.  McCanagh  had  a  terrible  experience  in  the 
water.  He  saw  his  wife  was  safe  on  land  and  thought 
his  only  daughter,  a  girl  aged  about  21,  was  also  saved, 
but  just  as  he  was  making  for  the  shore  he  saw  her  and 
went  to  rescue  her.  He  succeeded  in  getting  within 
about  ten  feet  of  land  when  the  girl  said  "  Good-bye, 
father,"  and  expired  in  his  arms  before  he  reached  the 
shore. 

A  pretty,  pale  little  woman  told  part  of  her  sad  story 
as  she  nervously  clasped  and  unclasped  her  hands  and 
cried  in  a  quite  heart-breaking  way.  Years  ago,  in  the 
Virginia  Valley,  somewhere  near  Winchester,  this  sad 
little  soul  met  and  loved  a  hard-working,  intelligent 
engineer,  named  Fenn.  They  were  married  some  years 
ago,  came  to  Johnstown,  where  they  had  a  neat,  com- 
fortable home.  Fenn  made  good  wages,  their  eight 


88  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOO.D. 

children  were  always  well  clad,  and  their  mother  lived 
with  her  life  concentrated  upon  them. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  flood,  Fenn  went  to  the 
butcher's  and  passed  out  of  this  short  history  in  the 
waters.  When  the  flood  came  into  the  Fenn  house,  the 
mother  gathered  her  chicks  in  the  parlor  and  told  them 
not  to  be  afraid,  as  God  was  there  and  would  guard 
them.  Up  came  the  torrent,  and  they  went  to  the  second 
floor,  and  again  the  little  mother  talked  of  hope  and 
bade  them  be  of  good  cheer,  "  for  papa — Heaven  rest 
him — would  come  soon  in  a  boat  and  take  them  away." 
Up,  up  and  up  rose  the  water,  and  now  the  family  were 
forced  to  the  top  story.  The  rooms  were  very  low,  and 
soon  the  heads  of  the  mother  and  children  were  beating 
against  the  ceiling.  "  Mamma,"  said  the  eldest  child,  a 
girl,  "  wouldn't  it  be  better  to  go  outside  and  die  in  the 
open  air  ?  " 

"  Yes,  dear,"  said  the  mother,  "  we'll  make  a  raft,  and 
all  go  down  together." 

A  MOTHER'S  EFFORTS  FOR  HER  CHILDREN. 

She  fought  her  own  and  her  children's  way  to  the 
window  and  opened  it.  She  caught  a  piece  of  plank  and 
on  it  put  the  eldest  child,  with  a  hasty  kiss  and  a  "  God 
bless  you."  Then  she  let  it  float  away  into  the  darkness 
and  the  roar  of  the  waves.  Six  times  these  frail  barks 
were  freighted  with  precious  cargoes  and  argosies  of 
pious  trust.  The  children  were  frightened,  but  obedi- 
ence was  part  of  their  creed,  and  they  made  but  little 
protest. 

Now  came  the  turn  of  the  last  child,  Bessie,  the  four- 
year-old.  One  can  fancy  what  it  meant — the  last  and 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  89 

the  dearest.  There  was  scarce  breathing  space  in  the 
room  now,  and,  if  haste  was  not  used,  death  would  come 
there  at  once.  To  a  broad  plank  Bessie  was  fastened 
securely  and  was  blessed  as  had  been  the  others.  "  I 
loved  them  all,  oh,  I  loved  them  all ! "  said  the  mother. 
"  But  I  had  two  kisses  for  Bessie,  for  she  was  Tom's 
favorite,  and  was  such  a  good  child.  She  put  her  arms 
about  my  neck  and  said,  '  You  know  you  said  God 
would  take  care  of  me  always,  mamma.  Will  he  take 
care  of  me  now  ? ' ' 

HER  EIGHT  CHILDREN  GONE. 

"  I  told  her  he  would  and  she  need  not  fear  and  then 
she  was  carried  away.  '  I'm  not  afraid,  mamma,'  she 
called  out,  and  I  heard  her,  although  I  could  not  see  her 
— and  that's  all,  except  that  the  roof  was  torn  off  and  I 
floated  off  on  it,  and  some  Italians  saved  me  at  Kernsville, 
sixteen  miles  from  here." 

"  And  the  children,  Mrs.  Fenn,  I  hope  they  all 
escaped  ? " 

"  We  have  found  two  of  them  dead — Bessie  and 
George — and  there  is  not  a  mark  on  Bessie's  face,  and 
oh  I  am  so  tired.  They're  all  gone,  every  one — eight  of 
them — and  I  am  going  home  to  Virginia  after  all  these 
years  to  rest  and  try  to  think." 

A   FEARFUL   FIGHT   FOR   LIFE. 

At  Lockport,  about  eighteen  miles  from  Johnstown, 
Eliel  Benson,  an  old  man,  Mrs.  Boyle,  Paddy  Madden 
and  two  Hungariens  were  rescued.  Mr.  Benson  said  to 
a  correspondent : 

"I  live  in  Cambria  City.     I  think  not  less  than  1500 


90  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD- 

people  were  lost.  In  the  house  with  me  on  Chestnut 
street  were  ten  persons  besides  myself,  and  I  feel  sure 
they  were  all  lost.  Up  to  four  o'clock  the  water,  which 
was  about  seven  feet  deep  in  the  streets,  remained  station- 
ary. At  about  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  great 
rush  came.  In  fifteen  minutes  the  water  rose  fully  ten 
feet,  and  in  five  minutes  more  I  am  sure  fifty  houses  came 
floating  down  the  streets.  There  were  people  in  every 
one  of  them,  and  God  only  knows  how  many  were  lost. 
As  they  were  carried  off  the  houses  were  jammed  to- 
gether and  against  the  houses  still  standing,  and  in  a 
very  few  minutes  they  were  all  battered  to  pieces  before 
they  had  been  carried  very  far.  The  house  I  was  in 
was  soon  smashed  to  pieces,  and  I  managed  to  jump  on 
to  a  cellar  door.  In  a  few  minutes  I  was  pushed  off  into 
the  flood,  and  when  I  looked  back  where  Cambria  City 
stood  there  was  nothing  but  a  great  lake  of  water.  It 
looked  to  me  as  if  every  house  had  been  razed  or  cov- 
ered over.  The  vast  sheet  of  water  was  full  of  floating 
timbers,  roofs  of  houses,  rafts  and  other  articles.  The 
scene  was  indescribable.  The  cries  of  the  men,  women 
and  children  were  fearful.  I  passed  Paddy  Madden's 
wife,  my  son's  wife  and  a  man  clinging  to  the  roof  of  a 
house.  I  cried  to  them  and  bade  them  good-bye.  In  a 
short  time  I  was  caught  by  the  water  and  turned  under. 
Every  once  in  a  while  I  got  into  a  whirlpool,  and  almost 
lost  my  grip  on  the  cellar  door.  I  saw  people  in  the 
water  ahead  of  me  and  all  around  me.  Many  of  them 
were  struck  by  the  crashing  timbers  and  killed  out- 
right. They  were  so  badly  hurt  that  they  fell  into  the 
water  and  were  drowned  at  once." 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD,  91 

AN  INTERESTING    DESCRIPTION    OF   THE  CATASTROPHE. 

A  correspondent  of  the  Philadelphia  Press  gives  the 
following  thrilling  narrative  of  the  terrible  flood : 

THE  FLOOD  ON  ITS  WAY. 

"  Far  up  the  valley  of  the  Conemaugh,  over  the  hills, 
not  up  the  course  of  the  stream,  some  people  saw  a 
strange  white  fog  through  the  rain  of  the  lowering  after- 
noon. Pious  Catholics  about  St.  Joseph's  Church  in 
Conemaugh  borough  saw  it,  crossed  themselves  and  fled. 
Superstitious  colored  people  living  in  the  little  '  black 
patch,'  near  the  Gautier  Works,  also  in  Conemaugh 
borough,  saw  it  and  fled,  too.  These  were  a  fraction. 
Johnstown  was  tired  of  hearing  of  the  dam. 

"  Meantime,  the  flood  was  on  its  way.  Long  before 
this  the  waters  had  burst  man's  puny  breastwork  at 
South  Fork,  sniffed  freedom  and  leaped  headlong  down 
the  valley,  flattening  a  forest  before  it  in  its  first  wild 
leap  for  liberty,  after  years  of  control.  Long  before  this 
it  had  made  an  unavailing  grasp  at  the  Limited,  stand- 
ing just  beyond  its  reach,  and  devoured  the  crew  of  the 
freight  which  stood  on  the  tracks  just  below  it.  Long 
before  this  it  had  made  a  running  river  of  the  main  street 
of  the  borough  of  Frankford,  swept  away  a  roundhouse 
and  toyed  with  a  dozen  engines  as  a  boy  toys  with  a 
rubber  ball.  Long  before  this  it  had  caught  the  passen- 
gers fleeing,  fifteen  of  them,  from  the  day  express,  and 
with  a  delicate,  ironical  touch,  for  a  loosened  mountain 
monster  had  drowned  Miss  Paulson's  pretty  friend  and 
hardly  bruised  the  petals  of  her  corsage  bouquet. 

"  All  this  it  had  done,  but  not  yet  shown  itself  in  the 
straight  gorge,  which  begins  at  the  head  of  the  valley 


92  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

and  the  end  of  Conemaugh  borough  and  continues  up 
past  Woodvale.  Only  the  white  fog  hung  over  the  hills 
beyond  the  town  in  the  stream  which  few  but  supersti- 
tious people  heeded.  The  fog  was  advancing,  but  then 
that  might  be  the  wind. 

"  The  engine  house  of  the  Conemaugh  Fire  Department 
was  in  the  east  end  of  Conemaugh  borough,  and  from  it 
there  was  a  good  view  up  the  valley  to  and  beyond 
Woodvale.  As  work  had  stopped  at  the  Gautier  Works, 
between  it  and  the  river,  James  Kelly  and  a  dozen  other 
members  of  the  company  were  idling  in  the  firehouse. 

"  These  men  heard  at  half-past  3  a  succession  of  quick 
whistles  on  the  north  shore  of  the  Conemaugh,  and 
running  out  saw  an  engine  whizzing  down  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad,  the  engineer  looking  out  of  the  cab 
window  and  gesticulating  with  his  left  hand,  while  with 
his  right  he  pulled  the  warning  rope.  Quick-witted 
Irish  boys,  they  knew  that  no  Pennsylvania  Railroad 
engineer  would  come  down  the  road  in  that  manner  un- 
less something  was  very  far  wrong.  They  rushed  into 
the  street,  looked  up  the  gorge  and  saw  not  the  borough 
of  Woodvale.  There  was  no  borough  of  Woodvale. 
Not  the  gorge  of  the  Conemaugh  entering  the  Cone- 
maugh valley.  There  was  no  gorge.  The  borough  of 
Woodvale  was  demolished.  The  gorge  was  filled  up  by 
the  most  appalling  thing  that  ever  visited  in  time  of 
peace  a  civilized  community.  Some  of  them  say  it  was 
sixty,  some  seventy-five  feet  high.  Some  say  it  was  of 
broken  timber ;  some  say  it  was  of  solid  water.  All  say 
that  there  were  houses  on  it,  and  men,  women  and 
children,  with  hands  outstretched  in  prayer,  and  that  it 
went  at  the  speed  of  a  fast  freight. 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  93 

A    RACE    BETWEEN    ENGINE    AND    FLOOD. 

"  Then  they  fled  south,  up  to  the  hills,  and  watched. 
They  saw  the  unknown  engineer  fleeing  eastward  along 
the  track,  with  the  flood  racing  behind  him.  They  do 
not  know,  nor  does  anyone  to  this  day,  who  he  was,  or 
whether  he  outran  it.  They  saw  the  flood  strike  Johns- 
town. They  saw  it  erase  the  houses  on  Railroad  street, 
and  then,  as  if  not  content  with  the  destruction  of  every- 
thing on  the  face  of  the  earth,  bear  down  into  its  bosom, 
grasp  the  rails  and  stringers  and  ties  of  the  street  car 
tracks  and  carry  them  along  before  it.  They  saw  it  strike 
the  long,  low,  solidly  built  iron  Gautier  Works,  and  saw 
Peter  McMullen,  whom  they  well  knew,  and  who  had 
been  called  into  the  works  to  adjust  a  belt,  climb  upon 
the  roof,  in  fancied  safety,  and  saw  the  roof,  the  man,  the 
whole  quarter-mile  of  building,  curl  and  crumble  up 
before  the  flood  like  a  shaving  before  a  carpenter's  plane, 
and  then  in  fragments  go  sliding  away. 

"  Then  they  saw  the  watery  curl  deploy  upon  the 
plain  and  while  one  wing  moved  straight  downward  and 
westward  along  the  course  of  the  Conemaugh  the  other 
charged  south  and  across,  toward  the  churches  and 
hotels  about  the  upper  end  of  Johnstown.  They  saw 
their  friend  and  comrade,  Put  Early,  of  Woodvale,  drifting 
down  on  a  roof  with  his  mother  and  sister.  They  might 
have  heard,  but  for  the  roar  of  water  and  the  crash  of 
houses,  the  mother  say  to  the  son  :  '  Lift  up  my  head, 
Pat.'  They  might  have  seen,  but  for  the  muddy  spray, 
the  son  lift  up  the  mother's  head  and  then  see  the  son's 
body  stiffen  with  horror  as  the  mother's  stiffened  with 
death.  These  are  some  few  things  that  the  young  men 


94  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

of  the  Conemaugh  Fire  Company  saw  and  heard  as  the 
flood  swept  past  them. 

"  From  Woodvale's  Mill  to  the  German  Catholic 
Church  in  the  lower  fringe  of  Conemaugh  borough  is 
an  easy  mile.  Never  an  instant  let  or  hindrance  did  the 
wing  which  charged  southward  across  the  plain  find 
between  the  two.  There  was  nothing  to  be  seen  but 
the  little  homes  and  little  shops,  places  to  make  homes 
with.  The  church  was  a  check.  It  burst  the  brick- 
work in  upon  the  eastern  wall  and  made  two  windows 
into  one. 

THE  CONVENT  CHAPEL  SPARED. 

"Then  it  turned  somewhat  eastward.  Here  occurred 
what  will,  while  the  Conemaugh  has  a  valley,  be  called 
a  miracle.  At  the  corner  of  Clinton  and  Locust  streets, 
Johnstown,  stood  the  convent  of  St.  John's  Parish. 
Above  it,  on  Locust  street,  stood  the  German  Lutheran 
Church,  and  next  it,  on  the  convent  side,  the  parochial 
school,  of  which  the  Sisters  had  charge.  The  Sisters, 
thirteen  of  them,  with  Sister  Ignatia  at  their  head,  fled 
into  the  second  story  of  the  convent  chapel.  The 
Lutheran  Church  and  Catholic  School  disappeared 
before  the  scourge  of  the  valley  like  snow  in  the  first 
thaw  of  March,  but  those  that  passed  on  that  wild  devas- 
tation and  saw  and  live  and  could  remember,  say  that 
Sister  Ignatia  stood  in  the  chapel  window  praying  with 
both  hands  clasped  upon  a  crucifix.  When  the  flooc 
passed  the  Sisters  came  out  safe  and  went  to  chloro- 
forming the  wounded  for  surgeons,  knives  and  splints. 

"  It  was  near  here, but  further  down,  opposite  the  north- 
ern wall  of  the  Methodist  Church,  that  this  wing  of  the 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  95 

flood  struck  the  new  Queen  Anne  house  of  John  Fron- 
heis;jr,  a  superintendent  in  the  Cambria  Works.  He 
was  at  home  as  most  men  were  that  day,  trying  to  calm  the 
fears  of  the  women  and  children  of  the  family  during  the 
earlier  flood.  Down  went  the  front  of  the  new  Queen 
Anne  house,  and  into  the  wreck  of  it  fell  the  superinten- 
dent, two  elder  children,  a  girl  and  a  boy.  As  the  flood 
passed  he  heard  the  boy  cry :  '  Don't  let  me  drown, 
papa  ;  break  my  arms  first ! '  and  the  girl :  '  Cut  off  my 
legs,  but  don't  let  me  drown  ! ' 

"  And  as  he  heard  them,  came  a  wilder  cry  from  his 
wife  drifting  down  with  the  torrent,  to  '  Save  the  baby.' 
But  neither  wife  or  baby  could  be  saved  and  boy  and 
girl  stayed  in  the  wreck  until  the  water  went  down  and 
they  were  extricated. 

SIXTEEN    MILLION    TONS    OF    WATER. 

"  Jacob  Reese,  of  Pittsburg,  the  inventor  of  the  basic 
process  for  manufacturing  steel,  in  estimating  the  force 
of  the  flood,  said  : 

"'When  the  South  Fork  dam  gave  way  16,000,000 
tons  of  water  rushed  down  the  mountain  side,  carrying 
thousands  of  tons  of  rocks,  logs  and  trees  with  it.  When 
the  flood  reached  the  Conemaugh  Valley  it  struck  the 
Pennsylvania  Railroad  at  a  point  where  they  make  up 
the  trains  for  ascending  the  Allegheny  Mountains.  Sev- 
eral trains  with  their  locomotives  and  loaded  cars  were 
swept  down  the  valley  before  the  flood  wave,  which  is 
said  to  have  been  fifty  feet  high.  Cars  loaded  with  iron, 
cattle,  and  freight  of  all  kinds,  with  those  mighty  loco- 
motives, weighing  from  seventy  to  one  hundred  tons  each, 


96  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

were  pushed  ahead  of  the  flood,  trucks  and  engines  roll- 
ing over  and  over  like  mere  toys. 

" '  Sixteen  million  tons  of  water  gathering  fences, 
barns,  houses,  mills  and  shops  into  its  maw.  Down  the 
valley  for  three  miles  or  more  rushed  this  mighty  ava- 
lanche of  death,  sweeping  everything  before  it,  and 
leaving  nothing  but  death  and  destruction  behind  it. 
When  it  struck  the  railroad  bridge  at  Johnstown,  and 
not  being  able  to  force  its  way  for  that  stone  structure, 
the  debris  was  gorged  and  the  water  dammed  up  fifty  feet 
in  ten  minutes. 

"'This  avalanche  was  composed  of  more  than  100,- 
ooo  tons  of  rocks,  locomotives,  freight  cars,  car  trucks, 
iron,  logs,  trees,  and  other  material  pushed  forward  by 
16,000,000  tons  of  water  falling  500  feet,  and  it  was  this 
that,  sliding  over  the  ground,  mowed  down  the  houses, 
mills  and  factories  as  a  mowing  machine  does  a  field  of 
grain.  It  swept  down  with  a  roaring,  crushing  sound  at 
the  rate  of  a  mile  a  minute  and  hurled  10,000  people 
into  the  jaws  of  death  in  less  than  half  an  hour.  And 
so  the  people  called  it  the  avalanche  of  death.' 

HORROR  PILED  ON  HORROR. 

"  Horror  piled  on  horror  is  the  story  from  Johnstown 
down  to  the  viaduct.  Horror  shot  through  with  intense 
lights  of  heroism,  and  here  and  there  pervaded  with 
gleams  of  humor.  It  is  known  that  one  girl  sang  as  she 
was  whirled  through  the  flood,  "  Jesus,  lover  of  my 
Soul,"  until  the  water  stopped  her  singing  forever.  It  is 
known  that  Elvie  Duncan,  daughter  of  the  superintend- 
ent of  the  Street  Car  Company,  when  her  family  was 
separated  and  she  was  swept  away  with  her  baby  sister, 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  9/ 

kept  the  little  thing  alive  by  chewing  bread  and  feeding 
it  to  her.  It  is  known  that  John  Dibart,  banker,  died  as 
miserably  in  his  splendid  house  as  John  McKee,  the 
prisoner,  in  liis  cell ;  that  the  pleasant  park,  with  the 
chain  fence  about  it,  was  so  completely  annihilated  that 
not  even  one  root  of  the  many  shade  trees  within  its 
boundaries  remains.  It  is  known  also  that  to  a  leaden- 
footed  messenger  boy  who  was  ambling  Main  street,  fear 
lent  wings  to  lift  him  into  the  Tribune  office  in  the  sec- 
ond story  of  the  postoffice  and  that  the  Rosensteels,  gen- 
eral store-keepers  of  Woodvale,  were  swept  into  the 
windows  of  their  friends,  the  Cohens,  retail  store-keepers 
of  Main  street,  Johnstown,  two  miles  from  where  they 
started.  It  is  known  that  the  Episcopal  Church,  at 
Locust  and  Market  streets,  went  down  like  a  house  of 
cards,  or  as  the  German  Lutheran  had  gone,  in  the  path 
of  the  flood  and  that  Rector  Diller,  his  wife  and  child 
and  adopted  daughter  went  with  it,  while  of  their  next 
door  neighbors,  Frank  Daly,  of  the  Cambria  Company, 
and  his  mother,  the  son  was  drowned  and  the  mother 
not  so  badly  hurt  in  body  as  in  spirit,  died  three  nights 
after  in  the  Mercy  hospital,  Pittsburg. 

"All  these  people  living  on  'The  Point,'  the  heart  of  the 
valley,  seemed  to  have  had  no  warning,  made  no  effort 
to  escape,  died  or  were  swept  away  without  sign,  save 
here  and  there  an  instance  protruding  from  the  sum 
total  of  destruction,  as  the  timbers  and  telegraph  poles 
and  logs  protruded  here  and  there  from  the  mass  of  ruin 
which  marched  in  advance  of  the  flood.  One  of  these 
was  the  word  that  ticked  into  the  Pittsburg  office  of  the 
Western  Union  from  Mrs.  Ogle,  the  chief  operator  in 
the  Johnstown  general  office : 
7 


98  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

11 '  This  is  my  last  message.  The  flood  is  coming.' 
"  But  while  the  flood  was  driving  people  to  silent 
death  down  the  valley,  there  was  a  sound  of  lamentation 
on  the  hills.  Hundreds  who  had  climbed  there  to  be 
out  of  reach  during  the  morning's  freshet  saw  the  city 
in  the  valley  disappearing  and  their  cries  rose  high 
above  the  crash  and  the  roar.  Little  time  had  eyes  to 
watch  or  lips  to  cry.  O'Brien,  the  disabled  Millville 
storekeeper,  was  one  of  the  crowd  in  the  park.  He  saw 
a  town  before  him,  then  a  mountain  of  timber  approach- 
ing, then  a  dizzy  swirl  of  men  at  the  viaduct,  a  breaking 
of  the  embankment  to  the  east  of  it,  the  forming  of  a 
whirlpool  there  that  ate  up  homes  and  those  that  dwelt 
in  them,  as  a  caldron  of  molten  iron  eats  up  the  metal 
scraps  that  are  thrown  in  to  cool  it,  and  then  a  silence 
and  a  subsidence. 

It  was  a  quarter  of  4  o'clock.  At  half  past  3  there 
had  been  a  Johnstown.  Now  there  was  none. 

CHAOS   AND    FLAMES. 

"  What  followed  was  chaos,  paralysis  and  panic. 
Those  who  got  out  were  swept  out.  As  night  came  on 
a  little  point  of  flame  that  had  been  almost  unnoticed  in 
the  wreckage  above  the  dam  grew  larger.  It  crept 
about  the  living  and  the  dead,  the  whole  houses  and  the 
houses  that  were  split  in  half.  It  became  a  blaze,  a  fire, 
a  conflagration.  While  it  lighted  up  the  foot  of  the 
valley  another  flame  grew  bright  at  the  head.  It  was 
the  Catholic  Church,  and  the  same  Conemaugh  firemen 
who  had  first  seen  the  approach  of  the  flood  were  fight- 
ing it.  Thus  night  fell — a  swirling,  subsiding  lake 
where  four  boroughs  had  been,  a  town  of  flame  at  either 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  99 

end,  a  whirlpool  where  an  embankment  had  been  grasp- 
ing for  more  human  lives. 

"  Over  the  crackle  of  the  flames,  the  cries  of  the  dying 
and  the  roar  of  the  whirlpool  came  another  sound.  It 
was  the  unsteady  tolling  of  the  bell  in  Millville  school 
rung  by  two  children  of  Charles  Dobbins,  of  Johnstown, 
who  had  been  swept  into  the  second  story  of  the  build- 
ing, and  so  they  all  unwittingly,  in  their  childish  terror, 
tolled  curfew  for  Johnstown." 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  bridge  whose  "  resistance  of  the  torrent "  has  been  the 
matter  of  so  much  talk,  was  a  noble  four-track  structure,  just 
completed,  50  ft.  wide  on  top,  32  ft.  high  above  the  water  line, 
consisting  of  7  skew  spans  of  58  ft.  each.  It  still  remains 
wholly  uninjured,  except  that  it  is  badly  spalled  on  the  upper 
side  by  blows  from  the  wreckage,  but  that  it  so  remains  is  due 
solely  to  the  accident  of  its  position,  and  not  to  its  strength, 
although  it  was  and  is  still  the  embodiment  of  solidity.  Had 
the  torrent  struck  it,  it  would  have  swept  it  away  as  if  it  had 
been  built  of  card-board,  leaving  no  track  behind  ;  but  fortu- 
nately (or  unfortunately)  its  axis  Avas  exactly  parallel  with  the 
path  of  the  flood,  which  hence  struck  the  face  of  the  mountain 
full,  and  compressed  the  whole  of  its  spoils  gathered  in  a  14- 
mile  course  into  one  inextricable  mass,  with  the  force  of  tens 
of  thousands  of  tons  moving  at  nearly  60  miles  per  hour.  Its 
spoil  consisted  of  (1)  every  tree  the  flood  had  touched  in 
its  whole  course,  with  trifling  exceptions,  including  hundreds 
of  large  trees,  all  of  Avhich  were  stripped  of  their  bark  and 
small  limbs  almost  at  once  ;  (2)  all  the  houses  in  a  thickly  set- 
tled town  3  miles  long  and  1  to  2  mile  wide ;  (3)  half  the 
human  beings  and  all  the  horses,  cows,  cats,  dogs,  and  rats 
that  were  in  the  houses  ;  (4)  many  hundred  of  miles  of  tele- 
graph wire  that  was  on  strong  poles  in  use,  and  many  times 
more  than  this  that  was  in  stock  in  the  mills ;  (5)  perhaps  50 
miles  of  track  and  track  material,  rails  and  all ;  (6)  locomo- 
tives, pig-iron,  brick,  stone,  boilers,  steam  engines,  heavy  ma- 
chinery, and  other  spoil  of  a  large  manufacturing  town.  All 
this  was  accumulated  in  one  inextricable  mass,  which  almost 
immediately  caught  fire  from  some  stove  which  the  waters  had 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  101 

not  touched.  Hundreds  if  not  thousands  of  human  beings, 
dead  and  alive,  were  caught  in  it,  many  by  the  lower  part  of 
the  body  only.  Eye-witnesses  describe  the  groans  and  cries 
which  came  from  that  vast  holocaust  for  nearly  the  whole 
night  as  something  almost  unbearable  to  listen  to,  yet  Avhich 
could  not  be  escaped.  Hundreds,  undoubtedly,  suffered  a 
slow  death  by  fire ;  yet  we  cannot  doubt  that  the  vast  major- 
ity of  the  men,  women,  and  children  in  that  fearful  jam,  which 
covered  fully  30  acres,  and  perhaps  more,  were  already  dead 
when  the  fire  began. 

Johnstown  proper  is  in  a  large  basin  formed  by  the  junc- 
tion of  the  Conemaugh  and  the  almost  equally  large  Stony 
Creek,  flowing  into  the  Conemaugh  from  the  south,  just  above 
the  bridge.  The  bridge  being  hermetically  sealed,  it  and  the 
adjacent  embankment  formed  a  second  dam  about  30  feet 
high,  Johnstown  serving  as  a  bed  of  a  reservoir  which  we 
should  judge  to  be  nearly  large  enough  to  hold  the  entire 
contents  of  the  reservoir  above,  except  that  it  was  already 
filled  knee-deep  or  more  by  an  unusually  heavy  but  annual 
spring  flood.  One  offshoot  of  the  main  torrent  was  deflected 
southward  by  the  Gautier  Works,  and  went  tearing  through 
the  heart  of  the  more  southerly  portion  of  the  town,  and  still 
another  similar  branch  was  split  off  from  the  main  torrent 
farther  down  ;  but  in  the  main,  the  direct  force  of  the  torrent 
did  not  strike  this  southerly  portion  of  the  town.  It  struck 
first  against  the  jam,  and  thus  lost  most  of  its  fierce  energy, 
flowing  thence  southward  in  a  heavy  stream,  which  tossed 
about  houses  in  the  most  fantastic  way,  so  that  this  part  of 
the  town  looks  much  like  a  child's  toy-village  poured  out  of  a 


102  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  01). 

box  hap-hazard  ;  the  houses  are  not  torn  to  pieces  generally. 

About  half  the  loss  of  life  was  in  this  district,  for  all 
Johnstown  became  speedily  a  lake  twenty  or  more  feet  deep, 
and  stayed  so  all  night;  and  it  was  here,  and  not  in  the 
direct  path  of  the  flood,  that  all  the  "  rescuing "  of  people 
from  roofs  and  floating  timbers  occurred.  Nothing  of  the 
kind  was  possible  in  the  flood  itself.  Likewise,  after  the 
break  in  the  embankment  had  occurred,  and  the  flood  began 
to  recede  from  Johnstown,  it  was  from  this  district  chiefly 
that  people  were  carried  off  down  stream  on  floating  wreck- 
age. All  that  came  within  the  direct  path  of  the  flood  was 
fast  within  the  jam. 

The  existence  of  this  temporary  Johnstown  reservoir 
naturally  broke  the  continuity  of  the  flood  discharge,  and 
transformed  it  into  something  not  greatly  different  from  an 
ordinary  but  very  heavy  freshet.  Cambria  City,  just  below 
the  bridge,  was  badly  wrecked,  with  the  loss  of  hundreds  of 
lives ;  but  in  the  main,  from  Johnstown  down,  the  flood 
ceased  to  be  very  destructive.  It  took  out  almost  every 
bridge  it  came  to,  for  50  miles,  and  washed  away  tracks,  and 
did  other  minor  damage,  but  the  Johnstown  "  reservoir"  saved 
hundreds  of  lives  below  it  by  equalizing  the  flow. 

THE  DAY  EXPRESS  DISASTER. 

John  Barr,  the  conductor  in  charge  of  the  Pullman  parlor 
car  on  the  first  section  of  the  day  express,  which  was  caught 
in  the  flood  at  Conemaugh,  tells  a  thrilling  story  of  hia  ex- 
perience. 

His  train,  with  two  others,  had  been  run  onto  a  siding 
on  high  ground  at  Conemaugh  Station,  opposite  the  big 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  103 

round-house.  He  saw  the  water  coming  and  describes 
it  as  having  the  appearance  of  a  mountain  moving 
towards  him. 

He  immediately  ran  to  his  car  and  shouted  to  his  pas- 
sengers to  run  for  their  lives.  John  Davis,  who  is  con- 
nected with  a  large  rolling  mill  near  Lancaster,  was 
travelling  from  Colorado  with  his  invalid  wife  and  two 
children,  aged  about  4  and  6.  Mr.  Davis  was  engaged 
in  getting  his  wife  off  the  car,  and  Conductor  Barr  grab- 
bed up  the  two  children,  and,  with  one  under  each  arm, 
started  for  the  hills,  with  the  water  right  at  his  heels. 
He  ran  a  distance  of  about  200  yards  and  barely  man- 
aged to  deposit  his  precious  burden  on  safe  ground 
before  the  flood  swept  past  him. 

Mr.  Barr  says  it  will  never  be  known  how  many  per- 
sons lost  their  lives  from  the  ill-fated  train.  The  one 
passenger  coach  which  was  carried  away  had  some  peo- 
ple in  it ;  how  many  noboby  knows.  He  thinks  at  least 
twenty  were  drowned.  A  freight  train  was  between  the 
day  express  and  the  flood  on  an  adjoining  track,  and  this 
served  to  in  a  measure  protect  his  train. 

Some  idea  of  the  terrible  force  of  the  flood  may  be 
gained  from  Mr.  Barr's  statement  that  the  engines  in  the 
round-house  37  in  number,  swept  past  him  standing  half 
way  out  of  the  water,  their  forty  tons  of  weight  not  being 
sufficient  to  take  them  beneath  the  surface.  The  bag- 
gage car  was  lifted  clear  out  of  the  water  and  landed  on 
the  other  side  of  the  river. 

A  Miss  Wayne,  who  was  travelling  from  Pittsburg  to 
Altoona,  had  a  wonderful  escape.  She  was  caught  in 
the  swirl  and  almost  all  of  her  clothing  torn  from  her 


1 04  THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD, 

person,  and  she  was  providentially  thrown  by  the  angry 
waters  clear  of  the  rushing  flood. 

Miss  Wayne  said  that  while  she  lay  more  dead  than 
alive  on  the  river  bank,  she  saw  the  Hungarians  rifle  the 
bodies  of  dead  passengers  and  cut  off  their  fingers  for 
the  purpose  of  obtaining  the  rings  on  the  hands  of  the 
corpses.  Miss  Wayne  was  provided  with  a  suit  of  men's 
clothing  and  rode  into  Altoona  thus  arrayed. 

Miss  Maloney,  of  Woodbury,  N.  J.,  a  passenger  on 
the  parlor  car,  started  to  leave  the  car,  and  then,  fearing 
to  venture  out  into  the  flood,  returned  to  the  inside  of 
the  car.  When  the  water  subsided  the  crew  rushed  to 
the  car,  expecting  to  find  Miss  Maloney  dead,  but  the 
water  had  not  gone  high  enough  to  drown  her  and  she 
was  all  right,  though  greatly  frightened.  She  displayed 
a  rare  amount  of  forethought  in  the  face  of  danger,  hav- 
ing tied  securely  around  her  waist  a  piece  of  her  cloth- 
ing on  which  her  name  was  written  in  indelible  ink.  She 
fully  expected  that  she  would  be  drowned,  and  did  this 
in  order  that  her  body,  if  found,  might  be  identified. 

When  the  water  was  still  high  Conductor  Barr  made 
an  attempt  to  get  back  to  his  car  from  the  hill,  but  after 
wading  up  to  his  arm-pits  in  the  water  he  was  forced  to 
return  to  safe  ground. 

THE  P.  R.  R.'S  LAST  TRAIN. 

The  last  train  to  which  the  Susquehanna  River  per- 
mitted the  use  of  the  tracks  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad  between  Harrisburg  and  Lancaster  rolled 
into  Broad  Street  Station  at  9.35  P.  M.  on  Saturday, 
June  1st.  It  was  a  nondescript  train.  The  last  car  was 
a  vestibule  Pullman  which  had  never  stopped  at  so  many 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  105 

way  stations  before  in  its  aristocratic  life,  and  which  had 
been  cut  off  the  stalled  Chicago  limited  at  Harrisburg 
to  be  taken  back  to  New  York.  The  rest  of  the  train 
had  started  from  Harrisburg  at  3.40  as  the  day  express 
and  at  Lancaster  had  been  changed  into  the  York  and 
Columbia  "  tub." 

No  train's  name  ever  fitted  it  better.  The  tub  had 
swam  through  seven  miles  of  water  on  its  way,  water 
differing  in  depth  from  three  inches  to  three  feet. 

The  seven  miles  of  water  covered  the  track  between 
Harrisburg  and  Highspire.  When  the  newspaper  train 
touched  with  the  morning  dailies  and  to  some  extent 
with  the  men  who  make  them,  dashed  drippingly  into 
Harrisburg  at  half-past  7  in  the  morning  it  had  only 
encountered  three-fourths  of  a  mile  of  water.  No 
reports  of  a  great  increase  in  the  Susquehanna's  output 
had  reached  beleagured  Harrisburg  during  the  day,  and 
the  express  started  out  with  two  engines,  1095  and  1105, 
towing  it  and  a  fair  chance  of  reaching  Philadelphia  on 
time.  The  original  three-quarters  of  a  mile  of  overflow — 
caused  by  the  back  water  of  Paxton  creek — was  passed 
without  incident.  The  water  was  about  up  to  the  bottom 
steps  of  the  car  platforms  and  the  pilot  of  the  leading 
engine  threw  to  each  side  a  fine  billow  of  yellow  water, 
sending  a  swell  like  that  of  a  tramp  steamer  passing 
Gloucester,  in  among  the  floating  outhouses  and  sub- 
merged slag  heaps  of  the  suburbs  of  Harrisburg  and 
bringing  cheers  from  thousands  who  watched  the  train's 
advance  from  their  second-story  windows  and  forgot  the 
condition  of  their  first-floor  furniture  in  the  excitement 
of  watching  the  amphibious  prowess  of  the  day  express. 

"  We've  seen  the  worst  of  it,"  said  the  elderly  kindly 


106  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

conductor  to  a  couple  of  excited  women  passengers  as 
the  last  of  the  three-fourths  of  a  mile  of  billows  was 
thrown  from  the  pilot  of  1095.  "  We've  seen  the  worst 
of  it,  but  the  train  will  have  to  wait  here  a  little  while — 
the  fires  are  almost  out." 

So  1095  and  1102  stood  puffing  and  panting  fora 
while  on  the  high  track  while  the  afternoon  sunlight 
dried  their  dripping  flanks  and  the  baffled  Susquehanna 
rolled  its  burden  of  driftwood  sullenly  southward  on 
their  right.  Then  the  day  express  rolled  on  again.  The 
dry  ground  was  just  about  long  enough  to  give  the  train 
an  impetus  for  another  header  into  the  Susquehanna's 
overflow.  It  was  into  the  Susquehanna  itself  that  the 
header  seemed  to  be  taken  this  time.  It  was  no  longer 
a  question  of  an  overflow  creek  in  a  railroad  cut.  The 
billows  from  the  prow  of  1095  swept  not  in  among  over- 
turned outhouses  and  submerged  slag  heaps,  but  out  on 
the  broad  coffee-colored  bosom  of  the  river  to  be  broken 
into  a  thousand  chop  waves  among  the  churning  driftwood. 
The  people  in  the  second-story  windows  forgot  to  cheer. 
The  people  in  the  coaches  forgot  to  joke  on  the  men's 
part  and  to  fret  on  the  women's.  It  was  curious  and  it 
was  ticklish.  The  train  was  running  slowly,  very  slowly. 
The  wheels  were  out  of  sight.  The  water  was  swirling 
among  the  trucks  and  lapping  at  the  platforms.  The 
only  sign  of  land  locomotion  about  the  day  express  was 
an  audible  one,  a  watery  pounding  and  rumbling  of  the 
wheels  on  the  hidden  tracks. 

The  day  express  looked  like  a  long  broad  river  ser- 
pent wriggling  on  its  belly  down  along  the  green  river 
bank.  Gradually  there  was  a  simultaneous  though  not 
concerted  movement  among  the  passengers.  They  began 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  107 

crowding  toward  the  platforms  and  looking  toward  the 
land  side.  Suddenly  a  brakeman  broke  the  queer  silence, 
in  a  voice  which  had  just  the  least  crescendo  of  excite- 
ment in  it.  "  If  you  people  don't  keep  quiet  we  can't  do 
anything ! "  he  shouted.  The  demand  was  a  little 
absurd,  the  direction  of  a  land  coxswain  to  "trim  ship." 
Still,  it  had  its  uses.  It  relieved  the  tension  which 
everybody  felt  and  nobody  acknowledged.  The  passen- 
gers retired  from  the  platforms. 

Joking  began  again  among  the  men  and  fretting 
among  the  women.  There  hadn't  been  much  fun  in 
looking  toward  the  land  side  anyway.  What  had 
appeared  to  be  a  recession  of  the  waters  when  looked  at 
from  above  was  merely  a  swelling  of  the  stream  from 
the  overflow  of  the  canal  which  parallels  the  road  for 
several  miles  at  that  point.  All  at  once  the  train  which 
had  been  moving  more  slowly  for  each  of  a  good  ten 
minutes  stopped  short.  It  seemed  as  if  1095*8  sharp 
nose  had  scented  danger  like  a  sensitive  horse,  and, 
panting,  refused  to  go  further. 

Then  the  engine  crews  were  seen  by  the  passengers 
to  leap  from  their  cabs  thigh  deep  in  the  water  and 
begin  hauling  at  some  sub-aquean  obstacle.  "  Drift- 
wood," said  the  same  brakeman  who  had  commanded 
quiet.  So  it  was.  A  train  stopped  by  driftwood !  It 
was  floating  all  about  and  threatened  to  impede  the  pro- 
gress of  the  day  express  altogether.  Fence  rails  from 
far  up  country  farms,  plartks  from  dismantled  signal 
stations,  platforms  along  the  line,  railroad  tires  innumer- 
able, branches  and  even  small  trunks  of  trees  floated 
against  the  wheels  with  disjected  stacks  of  green  wheat 
and  other  ruined  crops  upon  the  ever-rising  flood  of  the 
river.  There  had  been  high  dry  land  in  sight  just  be- 


108  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

yond  Highspire  Station,  but  as  sure  as  guns  were  iron 
and  floods  were  floods  the  land  was  disappearing.  The 
river's  rise  was  steady.  The  inhabitants  of  the  drowned 
lands  who  appeared  to  take  the  drowning  easily,  though 
no  such  a  drowning  had  been  known  to  them  in  a  quar- 
ter of  a  century,  had  been  in  large  numbers  keeping 
company  of  the  train  for  the  last  two  miles  in  skiffs  and 
punts.  They  rowed  close  to  the  cars  and  towed  away 
the  larger  drift.  They  were  not  entirely  on  life-saving 
service.  There  was  a  bit  of  the  wreckage  in  their  com- 
position. They  towed  the  trunk  and  ties  into  their  front 
yards  and  anchored  them  to  their  window-blinds. 

Finally  the  straining  backs  of  the  engine  crews  gave 
one  mighty  tug  at  the  hidden  obstacle.  A  huge  plat- 
form plank  floated  loose  from  1095,  and  1095  shrieked 
triumph.  The  wheels  began  to  churn  the  brown  water 
with  yellowish  white  and  1095  and  1 102  ran  up  on  the 
dry  ground  like  the  eagle  in  the  sun,  to  whom  the  Irish 
poet  compared  the  Irish  troops  at  Fontenoy.  As  they 
did  so  the  clatter  of  a  light  advancing  train  was  heard 
from  the  east,  and  a  sound  of  cheering.  A  single  engine 
drawing  two  crowded  cars  shot  around  the  bend,  and 
ran  with  a  light  heart  into  the  torrent  out  of  which  the 
day  express  had  just  emerged. 

"  They'll  never  get  through,"  was  the  unanimous 
comment  of  the  day  express  passengers,  and  their  verdict 
seemed  to  be  confirmed  officially  by  the  brakeman  who 
had  been  excited.  He  stood  in  the  door  of  the  car  and 
shouted :  "  This  train  will  stop  at  all  stations  between 
Lancaster  and  Bryn  Mawr.  There  will  be  no  more 
trains  between  Harrisburg  and  Lancaster  to-night." 
Afterwards  adding,  "  As  this  is  the  last  train  it  will  have 
to  take  the  place  of  the  '  tub. '" 


CHAPTER  IX. 

A  PROCLAMATION  BY  THE  GOVERNOR  OF  PENNSYLVANIA. 

GOVERNOR  BEAVER  having  received  official  information 
regarding  the  terrible  destruction  of  life  and  property  in 
the  valley  of  the  Conemaugh,  issued  the  following  proc- 
lamation : 

COMMONWEALTH  OF  PENNSYLVANIA,  Executive  Cham- 
ber, Harrisburg,  Pa.,  June  3,  1889. — To  the  people  of  the 
United  States  :  The  Executive  of  the  Commonwealth  of 
Pennsylvania  has  refrained  hitherto  from  making  any 
appeal  to  the  people  for  their  benefactions  in  order  that 
he  might  receive  definite  and  reliable  information  from 
the  centres  of  disaster  during  the  late  floods,  which  have 
been  unprecedented  in  the  history  of  the  State  or  nation. 
Communication  by  wire  has  been  established  with  Johns- 
town to-day.  The  city  authorities  are  in  control,  the 
Adjutant-General  of  the  State  co-operating  with  them. 
Order  has  been  restored  and  is  likely  to  continue. 

Newspaper  reports  as  to  the  loss  of  life  and  property 
have  not  been  exaggerated.  The  valley  of  the  Cone- 
maugh, which  is  peculiar,  has  been  swept  from  one  end 
to  the  other  as  with  the  besom  of  destruction.  It  con- 
tained a  population  of  40,000  to  50,000  people,  living 
for  the  most  part  along  the  banks  of  a  small  river,  con- 
fined within  its  narrow  limits. 

The  most  conservative  estimates  place  the  loss  of  life 
at  5,000  human  beings  and  of  property  at  $25,000,000. 
Whole  towns  have  been  utterly  destroyed,  not  a  vestige 

(109) 


IIO  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD, 

remaining.  In  the  more  substantial  towns  the  better 
buildings,  to  a  certain  extent,  remain,  but  in  a  damaged 
condition.  Those  who  are  least  able  to  bear  it  have  suf- 

r 

fered  the  loss  of  everything.  The  most  pressing  needs 
so  far  as  food  is  concerned  have  been  supplied.  Shoes 
and  clothing  of  all  sorts  for  men,  women  and  children 
are  greatly  needed.  Money  is  also  urgently  required  to 
remove  the  debris,  bury  the  dead  and  care  temporarily 
for  widows  and  orphans,  and  for  the  homeless  generally. 
Other  localities  have  suffered  to  some  extent  in  the  same 
way,  but  not  in  the  same  degree. 

Late  advices  would  seem  to  indicate  that  there  is  great 
loss  of  life  and  destruction  of  property  along  the  west 
branch  of  the  Susquehanna  and  in  localities  from  which 
we  can  get  no  definite  information.  What  does  come, 
however,  is  of  the  most  appalling  character,  and  it  is 
expected  that  the  details  will  add  new  horrors  to  the  sit- 
uation. The  responses  from  within  and  without  the 
State  have  been  most  generous  and  cheering.  North 
and  south,  east  and  west,  from  the  United  States  and 
from  England  there  comes  the  same  hearty,  generous 
response  of  sympathy  and  help.  The  President,  Gov- 
ernors of  States,  Mayors  of  cities,  individuals  and  com- 
mittees, private  and  municipal  corporations  seem  to  vie 
with  each  other  in  their  expressions  of  sympathy  and  in 
their  contributions  of  substantial  aid. 

But  gratifying  as  are  these  responses,  there  is  no  dan- 
ger of  their  exceeding  the  necessities  of  the  situation. 
A  careful  organization  has  been  made  upon  the  ground 
for  the  distribution  of  whatever  assistance  is  furnished 
in  kind.  The  Adjutant  General  of  the  State  is  there  as 
representative  of  the  State  authorities,  and  is  giving  per- 


THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD.  Ill 

sonal  attention,  in  connection  with  the  Chief  Burgess  of 
Johnstown  and  a  committee  of  relief,  to  the  distribution 
of  the  help  which  is  furnished.  Funds  contributed  in 
aid  of  the  sufferers  can  be  deposited  with  Drexel  &  Co., 
Philadelphia;  Jacob  C.  Bomberger,  banker,  Harrisburg; 
or  William  R.  Thompson  &  Co.,  bankers,  Pittsburg.  All 
money  contributed  will  be  used  carefully  and  judiciously. 
Present  wants  are  fairly  met.  A  large  force  will  be  em- 
ployed at  once  to  remove  the  debris  and  bury  the  dead, 
so  as  to  avoid  disease  and  epidemic. 

The  people  of  the  Commonwealth  and  others  whose 
unselfish  generosity  is  hereby  heartily  appreciated  and 
acknowledged  maybe  assured  that  their  contributions  will 
be  made  to  bring  their  benefactions  to  the  immediate 
and  direct  relief  of  those  for  whose  benefit  they  are 
intended. 

JAMES  A.  BEAVER. 

By  the  Governor : 

Charles  W.  Stone,  Secretary  of  the  Commonwealth. 

THE  FIRST  RUSH  OF  THE  DEATH  WAVE. 

A  man  who  was  above  the  danger  line  on  the  right 
bluff  above  the  town,  and  who  saw  the  first  rush  of  the 
death  wave,  says  that  it  was  preceded  by  a  peculiar 
phenomena,  which  he  thinks  was  the  explosion  of  the 
gas  mains.  He  says  that  a  few  minutes  before  the  wall 
of  the  water  had  reached  the  city  there  was  a  tremen- 
dous explosion  somewhere  in  the  upper  part  of  the 
place.  He  said  that  he  saw  the  fragments  of  the  build- 
ings rise  in  the  air,  and  the  next  moment  saw  two  lines 
of  flame  down  through  the  city  in  different  directions, 
and  frame  buildings  were  apparently  being  torn  to  pieces 


1 1 2  THE  JOHNS  TO  IV N  FLOOD. 

and  wrecked.  The  next  minute  the  water  came,  and  he 
remembers  nothing  further.  There  really  was  an  explos- 
ion of  gas  that  wrecked  a  church  in  the  upper  part  of 
the  city  just  at  the  time  of  the  flood.  If  there  was  also 
an  explosion  of  the  gas  main,  the  cause  of  the  fire  at 
the  bridge  is  explained.  Light  frame  buildings  set  on 
fire  by  the  explosion  were  picked  up  bodily  and  tossed 
on  top  of  the  water  into  the  wreck  at  the  bridge  without 
the  fire  being  extinguished. 

Mrs.  Fredericks,  an  aged  woman,  was  rescued  alive 
from  the  attic  in  her  house.  The  house  had  floated  from 
what  was  formely  Vine  street  to  the  foot  of  the  moun- 
tains. Mrs.  Fredericks  says  her  experience  was  terrible. 
She  said  she  saw  hundreds  of  men,  women  and  children 
floating  down  the  torrent  to  meet  their  death,  some  pray- 
ing, while  others  had  actually  become  raving  maniacs. 

THE  REAL  HORRORS  OF  THE  DISASTER. 

"  No  one  will  ever  know  the  real  horrors  of  this  acci- 
dent unless  he  saw  the  burning  people  and  debris  beside 
the  stone  bridge,"  remarked  the  Rev.  Father  Trautwein. 
"The  horrible  nature  of  the  affair  cannot  be  realized  by 
any  person  who  did  not  witness  the  scene.  As  soon  as 
possible  ofter  the  first  great  crash  occurred  I  hastened  to 
the  bridge. 

"A  thousand  persons  were  struggling  in  the  ruins  and 
imploring  for  God's  sake  to  release  them.  Frantic  hus- 
bands and  fathers  stood  at  the  edge  of  the  furnace  that 
was  slowly  heating  to  a  cherry  heat  and  incinerating 
human  victims.  Every  one  was  anxious  to  save  his  own 
relatives,  and  raved,  cursed,  and  blasphemed  until  the 
air  appeared  to  tremble.  No  system,  no  organized  effort 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FLOOD  1 1 3 

to  release  the  pent-up  persons  was  made  by  those  related 
to  them.  Shrieking  they  would  command.  '  Go  to  that 
place,  go  get  her  out,  for  God's  sake  get  her  out;  refer- 
ring to  some  loved  one  they  wanted  saved.  Under  the 
circumstances  it  was  necessary  to  secure  organization, 
and  thinking  I  was  trying  to  thwart  their  efforts  when  I 
ordered  another  point  to  be  attacked  by  the  rescuers, 
they  advanced  upon  me,  threatened  to  shoot  me  or  dash 
me  into  the  raging  river. 

"  One  man  who  was  trying  to  steer  a  float  upon  which 
his  wife  sat  on  a  mattress  lost  his  hold,  and  in  a  moment 
the  craft  swept  into  a  sea  of  flame  and  never  again 
appeared.  The  agony  of  that  man  was  simply  heart- 
rending. He  raised  his  arms  to  heaven  and  screamed  in 
his  mental  anguish  and  only  ceased  that  to  tear  his  hair 
and  moan  like  one  distracted.  Every  effort  was  made  to 
save  every  person  accessible,  and  we  have  the  satisfaction 
of  knowing  that  fully  200  were  spared  from  cremation. 
One  young  woman  was  found  under  the  dead  body  of  a 
relative. 

"  A  force  of  men  attempted  to  extricate  her  and  suc- 
ceeded in  releasing  every  limb  but  one  leg.  For  three 
hours  they  labored,  and  every  moment  the  flames  crept 
nearer  and  nearer.  I  was  on  the  point  several  times  of 
ordering  the  men  to  chop  her  leg  off.  It  would  have 
been  much  better  to  save  her  life  even  at  that  loss  than 
have  her  burn  to  death.  Fortunately  it  was  not  nec- 
essary ;  but  the  young  lady's  escape  from  mutilation  or 
death  she  will  never  realize." 

The  flood  and  fire  claimed  among  its  victims  not  only 
the  living,  but  the  dead.  To-day  a  handsome  coffin  was 
found  half  burned  in  some  charred  wreckage  down  near 


1 1 4  THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD. 

the  point.  Inside  was  found  the  body  of  a  man  shrouded 
for  burial,  but  so  scorched  about  the  head  and  face  as  to 
be  unrecognizable.  The  supposition  is  that  the  house  in 
which  the  dead  man  had  lain  had  been  crushed  and  the 
debris  partly  consumed  by  fire.  The  body  is  still  at  the 
Fourth  Ward  school  house,  and  unless  reclaimed  it  will  be 
buried  in  the  unknown  field. 

THE  CLOCK  STOPPED  AT  $.20. 

One  of  the  queerest  sights  in  the  centre  of  the  town  is 
a  three-story  brick  residence  standing  with  one  wall,  the 
others  having  disappeared  completely,  leaving  the  floors 
supported  by  the  partitions.  In  one  of  the  upper  rooms 
can  be  seen  a  mantel  with  a  lambrequin  on  it  and  a 
clock  stopped  at  twenty  minutes  after  five.  In  front  of 
the  clock  is  a  lady's  fan,  though  from  the  marks  on  the 
wall  paper  the  water  has  been  over  all  these  things. 

In  the  upper  part  of  the  town,  where  the  back  water 
from  the  flood  went  into  the  valley  with  diminished 
force,  there  are  many  strange  scenes.  There  the  houses 
were  toppled  over  one  after  another  in  a  row,  and  left 
where  they  lay.  One  of  them  was  turned  completely 
over  and  stands  with  its  roof  on  the  foundations  of 
another  house  and  its  base  in  the  air.  The  owner  came 
back,  and  getting  into  his  house  through  the  windows 
walked  about  on  his  ceiling.  Out  of  this  house  a  woman 
and  her  two  children  escaped  safely  and  were  but  little 
hurt,  although  they  were  stood  on  their  heads  in  the 
whirl.  Every  house  has  its  own  story.  From  one  a 
woman  sent  up  in  her  garret  escaped  by  chopping  a  hole 
in  the  roof.  From  another  a  Hungarian  named  Grevins 
leaped  to  the  shore  as  it  went  whirling  past  and  fell 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  Tl5 

twenty-five  feet  upon  a  pile  of  metal  and  escaped  with  a 
broken  leg.  Another  is  said  to  have  came  all  the  way 
from  very  near  the  start  of  the  flood  and  to  have  cir- 
cled around  with  the  back  water  and  finally  landed  on 
the  flats  at  the  city  site,  where  it  is  still  pointed  out. 

THE  SITUATION. 

A  correspondent  thus  describes  the  situation  at 
Johnstown,  nine  days  after  the  disaster  : 

"  So  vast  is  the  field  of  destruction  that  to  get  an  ade- 
quate idea  from  any  point  level  with  the  town  is  simply 
impossible.  It  must  be  viewed  from  a  height.  From 
the  top  of  Kernsville  Mountain,  just  at  the  east  of  the 
town,  the  whole  strange  panorama  can  be  seen. 

"  Looking  down  from  the  height  many  things  about 
the  flood  that  appear  inexplicable  from  below  are  per- 
fectly plain.  How  so  many  houses  happened  to  be  so 
queerly  twisted,  for  instance,  as  if  the  water  had  a  twirl- 
ing instead  of  a  straight  motion,  was  made  perfectly  clear. 

"  The  town  was  built  in  an  almost  equilateral  triangle, 
with  one  angle  pointed  squarely  up  the  Conemaugh 
Valley  to  the  east,  from  which  the  flood  came.  At  the 
northerly  angle  was  the  junction  of  the  Conemaugh  and 
Stony  creeks.  The  southern  angle  pointed  up  the  Stony 
Creek  Valley.  Now  about  one- half  of  the  triangle, 
formerly  densely  covered  with  buildings,  is  swept  as 
clear  as  a  platter,  except  for  three  or  four  big  brick 
buildings  that  stand  near  the  angle  which  points  up  the 
Conemaugh. 

"The  course  of  the  flood,  from  the  exact  point  where 
it  issued  from  the  Conemaugh  Valley  to  where  it  disap- 
peared below  in  a  turn  in  the  river  and  above  by  spread- 


1 1 6  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

ing  itself  over  the  flat  district  of  five  or  six  miles,  is 
clearly  defined.  The  whole  body  of  water  issued 
straight  from  the  valley  in  a  solid  wave  and  tore  across 
the  village  of  Woodvale  and  so  on  to  the  business  part 
of  Johnstown  at  the  lower  part  of  the  triangle.  Here  a 
cluster  of  solid  brick  blocks,  aided  by  the  comformation 
of  the  land  evidently  divided  the  stream. 

"  The  greater  part  turned  to  the  north,  swept  up  the 
brick  block  and  then  mixed  with  the  ruins  of  the  vil- 
lages above  down  to  the  stone  arch  bridge.  The  other 
stream  shot  across  the  triangle,  was  turned  southward 
by  the  bluffs  and  went  up  the  valley  of  Stony  Creek. 
The  stone  arch  bridge  in  the  meantime  acted  as  a  dam 
and  turned  part  of  the  current  back  toward  the  south, 
where  it  fi'nished  the  work  of  the  triangle,  turning  again 
to  the  northward  and  back  to  the  stone  arch  bridge. 
The  stream  that  went  up  Stony  Creek  was  turned  back 
by  the  rising  ground  and  then  was  reinforced  by  the 
back  water  from  the  bridge  again  and  started  south, 
where  it  reached  a  mile  and  a  half  and  spent  its  force  on 
a  little  settlement  called  Grubbtown. 

WORK  OF  THE  WATER. 

"  The  frequent  turning  of  this  stream,  forced  against 
the  buildings  and  then  the  bluffs,  gave  it  a  regular  whirl- 
ing motion  from  right  to  left,  and  made  a  tremendous 
eddy,  whose  centrifugal  force  twisted  everything  it 
touched.  This  accounts  for  the  comparatively  narrow 
path  of  the  flood  through  the  southern  part  of  the  town, 
where  its  course  through  the  thiekly  clustered  frame 
dwelling  houses  is  as  plain  as  a  highway. 

"The  force  of  the  stream  diminished  gradually  as  it 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  \  1 7 

went  south,  for  at  the  place  where  the  currents  separated 
every  building  is  ground  to  pieces  and  carried  away,  and 
at  the  end  the  houses  were  only  turned  a  little  on  their 
foundations.  In  the  middle  of  the  course  they  are 
turned  over  on  their  sides  or  upside  down.  Further 
down  they  are  not  single,  but  great  heaps  of  ground 
lumber  that  look  like  nothing  so  much  as  enormous  pith 
balls. 

"  To  the  north  the  work  of  the  waters  is  of  a  differ- 
ent sort.  It  picked  up  everything  except  the  big 
buildings  that  divided  the  current  and  piled  the  frag- 
ments down  upon  the  stone  bridge  or  swept  them  over 
and  so  on  down  the  river  for  miles.  This  left  the  great 
yellow,  sandy  and  barren  plain,  so  often  spoken  of  in 
the  despatches  where  stood  the  best  buildings  in  Johns- 
town— the  opera  house,  the  big  hotel,  many  wholesale 
warehouses,  shops  and  the  finest  residences. 

"  In  this  plain  there  are  now  only  the  Baltimore  and 
Ohio  Railroad  train,  a  school  house,  the  Morrell  Com- 
pany's store  and  an  adjoining  warehouse  and  the  few 
buildings  of  the  triangle.  One  brick  residence,  badly 
shattered,  is  also  standing. 

HOUSES    CHANGED    BASE. 

"  These  structures  do  not  relieve  the  shocking  picture 
of  ruin  spread  out  below  the  mountain,  but  by  contrast 
making  it  more  striking.  That  part  of  the  town  to  the 
south  where  the  flood  tore  the  narrow  path  there  used 
to  be  a  separate  village  which  was  called  Kernsville.  It 
is  now  known  as  the  South  Side.  Some  of  the  queerest 
sights  of  the  wreck  are  there,  though  few  persons  have 
gone  to  see  them. 


1 18  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

"  Many  of  the  houses  that  are  left  there  scattered 
helter  skelter,  thrown  on  their  sides  and  standing  on  their 
roofs,  were  never  in  that  neighborhood  nor  anywhere 
near  it  before.  They  came  down  on  the  breast  of  the 
wave  from  as  far  up  as  Franklin,  were  carried  safely  by 
the  factories  and  the  bridges,  by  the  big  buildings  at  the 
dividing  line,  up  and  down  on  the  flood  and  finally 
settled  in  their  new  resting  places  little  injured. 

"  A  row  of  them,  packed  closely  together  and  every 
one  tipped  over  at  about  the  same  angle,  is  only  one  of 
the  queer  freaks  the  water  played. 

"  I  got  into  one  of  these  houses  in  my  walk  through 
the  town  to-day.  The  lower  story  had  been  filled  with 
water  and  everything  in  it  had  been  torn  out.  The 
carpet  had  been  split  into  strips  on  the  floor  by  the  sheer 
force  of  the  rushing  tide.  Heaps  of  mud  stood  in  the 
corners.  There  was  no  vestige  of  furniture.  The  walls 
dripped  with  moisture. 

"  The  ceiling  was  gone,  the  windows  were  out  and  the 
cold  rain  blew  in  and  the  only  thing  that  was  left  intact 
was  one  of  those  worked  worsted  mottoes  that  you 
always  expect  to  find  in  the  homes  of  working  people. 
It  still  hung  to  the  wall,  and  though  much  awry  the  glass 
and  frame  were  unbroken.  The  motto  looked  grimly 
and  sadly  sarcastic.  It  was  : — 

"  There  is  no  place  like  home." 

"  A  melancholy  wreck  of  a  home  that  motto  looked 
down  upon. 

A   TREE   IN   A   HOUSE. 

"I  saw  a  wagon  in  the  middle  of  a  side  street  sticking 
tongue  and  all  straight  up  into  the  air,  resting  on  its  tail 


THE  JOHNSTO WN  FLOOD.  119 

board,  with  the  hind  wheels  almost  completely  buried  in 
the  mud.  I  saw  a  house  standing  exactly  in  the  middle 
of  Napoleon  street,  the  side  stove  in  by  crashing  against 
some  other  house  and  in  the  hole  the  coffin  of  its  owner 
was  placed. 

"  Some  scholar's  library  had  been  strewn  over  the 
street  in  the  last  stage  of  the  flood,  for  there  was  a  trail 
of  good  books  left  half  sticking  in  the  mud  and  reach- 
ing for  over  a  block.  One  house  had  been  lifted  over 
two  others  in  some  mysterious  way  and  then  had  settled 
down  between  them  and  there  it  stuck,  high  up  in  the 
air,  so  its  former  occupants  might  have  got  into  it  again 
with  ladders. 

"  Down  at  the  lower  end  of  the  course  of  the  stream, 
where  its  force  was  greater,  there  was  a  house  lying  on 
one  corner  and  held  there  by  being  fastened  in  the  deep 
mud.  Through  its  side  the  trunk  of  a  tree  had  been 
driven  like  a  lance,  and  there  it  stayed  sticking  out 
straight  in  the  air.  In  the  muck  was  the  case  and  key 
board  of  a  square  piano,  and  far  down  the  river,  near  the 
debris  about  the  stone  bridge,  were  its  legs.  An  upright 
piano,  with  all  its  inside  apparatus  cleanly  taken  out, 
stood  straight  up  a  little  way  off.  What  was  once  a  set 
of  costly  furniture  was  strewn  all  about  it,  and  the  house 
that  had  contained  it  was  nowhere. 

"  The  remarkable  stories  that  have  been  told  about 
people  floating  a  mile  up  the  river  and  then  back  two  or 
three  times  are  easily  credible  after  seeing  the  evidences 
of  the  strange  course  the  flood  took  in  this  part  of  the 
town.  People  who  stood  near  the  ruins  of  Poplar  Bridge 
saw  four  women  on  a  roof  float  up  on  the  stream,  turn 
a  short  distance  above  and  come  back  and  go  past 


120  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

again  and  once  more  return.  Then  they  were  seen  to 
go  far  down  on  the  current  to  the  lower  part  of  the  town 
and  were  rescued  as  they  passed  the  second  story  win- 
dow of  a  school  house.  A  man  who  was  imprisoned  in 
the  attic  of  his  house  put  his  wife  and  two  children  on  a 
roof  that  was  eddying  past  and  stayed  behind  to  die 
alone.  They  floated  up  the  stream  and  then  came  back 
and  got  upon  the  roof  of  the  very  house  they  had  left, 
and  the  whole  family  were  saved. 

"  At  Grubbtown  there  is  a  house  which  came  all  the 
way  from  Woodvale.  On  it  was  a  man  who  lived  near 
Grubbtown,  but  was  working  at  Woodvale  when  the 
flood  came.  He  was  carried  right  past  his  own  home, 
and  coolly  told  the  people  at  the  bridge  to  bid  his  wife 
good-bye  for  him.  The  house  passed  the  bridge  three 
times,  the  man  carrying  on  a  conversation  with  the  peo- 
ple on  the  shore  and  giving  directions  for  his  burial  if 
his  body  should  be  found. 

"  The  third  time  the  house  went  up  it  grounded  at 
Grubbtown,  and  in  an  hour  or  two  the  man  was  safe  at 
home.  Three  girls  who  went  by  on  a  roof  crawled  into 
the  branches  of  a  tree,  and  had  to  stay  there  all  night 
before  they  could  make  anyone  understand  where  they 
were.  At  one  time  scores  of  floating  houses  were 
wedged  in  together  near  the  ruins  of  Poplar  street  bridge. 
Four  brave  men  went  out  from  the  shore,  and  stepping 
from  house-roof  to  house-roof  brought  in  twelve  women 
and  children. 

"  Some  women  crawled  from  roofs  into  the  attics  of 
houses.  In  their  struggles  with  the  flood  most  of  their 
clothes  had  been  torn  from  them,  and  rather  than  appear 
on  the  streets  they  stayed  where  they  were  until  hunger 


THE  JOHNSTO WN  FL OOD.  1 2 1 

forced  them  to  shout  out  of  the  window  for  help.  At 
this  stage  of  the  flood  more  persons  were  lost  by  being 
crushed  to  death  than  by  drowning.  As  they  floated  by 
on  roofs  or  doors  the  toppling  houses  fell  over  upon 
them  and  killed  them. 

SAVED  FROM  DISFIGURATION. 

"  The  workers  began  on  the  wreck  on  Main  street  just 
opposite  the  First  National  Bank,  one  of  the  busiest 
parts  of  the  city.  A  large  number  of  people  were  lost 
here,  the  houses  being  crushed  on  one  side  of  the  street 
and  being  almost  untouched  on  the  other,  a  most  remark- 
able thing  considering  the  terrific  force  of  the  flood. 
Twenty-one  bodies  were  taken  out  in  the  early  morning 
and  taken  to  the  morgue.  They  were  not  much  injured, 
considering  the  weight  of  lumber  above  them. 

"  In  many  instances  they  were  wedged  in  crevices. 
They  were  all  in  a  good  state  of  preservation,  and  when 
they  were  embalmed  they  looked  almost  lifelike.  In 
this  central  part  of  the  city  examination  is  sure  to  result 
in  the  unearthing  of  bodies  in  every  corner.  Cottages 
which  are  still  standing  are  banked  up  with  lumber  and 
driftwood,  and  it  is  like  mining  to  make  any  kind  of 
a  clear  space. 

DYNAMITE   TEARS  THE  BODIES. 

"  Thirteen  bodies  were  taken  from  the  burning  debris 
at  the  Stone  Bridge  at  one  time  yesterday  afternoon. 
None  of  the  bodies  were  recognizable,  and  they  were  put 
in  coffins  and  buried  immediately.  They  were  so  badly 
decomposed  that  it  was  impossible  to  keep  them  until 
they  could  be  indentified.  During  a  blast  at  the  bridge 
yesterday  afternoon  two  bodies  were  almost  blown  to 


1 2  2  THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD. 

pieces.  The  blasting  has  had  the  effect  of  opening  the 
channel  under  the  central  portion  of  the  bridge. 

"  The  order  that  was  issued  that  all  unidentified  dead 
be  buried  is  being  rapidly  carried  out.  The  Rev.  Mr. 
Beall,  who  has  charge  of  the  morgue  at  the  Fourth  Ward 
school-house,  which  is  the  chief  place,  says  that  a  large 
force  of  men  has  been  put  at  work  digging  graves,  and 
at  the  close  of  the  afternoon  the  remains  will  be  laid 
away  as  rapidly  as  it  can  be  done. 

"  William  Flynn  has  taken  charge  of  the  army  of 
eleven  hundred  laborers  who  are  doing  a  wonderful 
amount  of  work.  In  an  interview  he  told  of  the  work 
that  has  to  be  done,  and  the  contractors'  estimates  show 
more  than  anything  the  chaotic  condition  of  this  city. 
'  It  will  take  ten  thousand  men  thirty  days  to  clear  the 
ground  so  that  the  streets  are  passable  and  the  work  of 
rebuilding  can  be  commenced,'  said  he,  '  and  I  am  at  a 
loss  to  know  how  the  work  is  to  be  done.  This  enthu- 
siasm will  soon  die  out  and  the  volunteers  will  want  to 
return  home. 

"'  It  would  take  all  Summer  for  my  men  alone  to  do 
what  work  is  necessary.  Steps  must  be  taken  at  once  to 
furnish  gangs  of  workmen,  and  I  shall  send  a  communi- 
cation to  the  Pittsburg  Chamber  of  Commerce  asking 
the  different  manufacturers  of  the  Ohio  Valley  to  take 
turns  for  a  month  or  so  in  furnishing  reliefs  of  work- 
men. 

"  '  I  shall  ask  that  each  establishment  stop  work  for  a 
week  at  a  time  and  send  all  hands  in  the  charge  of  a 
foreman  and  timekeeper.  We  will  board  and  care  for 
them  here.  These  gangs  should  come  for  a  week  at  a 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  12$ 

time,  as  no  organization  can  be  effected  if  workmen  arrive 
and  leave  when  they  please.' 

"  A  meeting  was  held  here  in  the  afternoon  which 
resulted  in  the  appointment  of  James  B.  Scott,  of  Pitts- 
burg,  generalissimo. 

"  Mr.  Scott  in  an  interview  said  that  he  proposed  to 
clear  the  town  of  all  wreckage  and  debris  of  all  descrip- 
tions and  turn  the  town  site  over  to  the  citizens  when  he 
has  completed  his  work  clean  and  free  from  obstructions 
of  all  kinds. 

TRACING   BODIES    BY   THE   SMELL. 

"  I  was  here  when  the  gang  came  across  one  of  the 
upper  stories  of  a  house.  It  was  merely  a  pile  of  boards 
apparently,  but  small  pieces  of  a  bureau  and  a  bed  spring 
from  which  the  clothes  had  been  burned  showed  the 
nature  of  the  find.  A  faint  odor  of  burned  flesh  pre- 
vailed exactly  at  this  spot. 

"  '  Dig  here,'  said  the  physician  to  the  men.  '  There 
is  one  body  at  least  quite  close  to  the  surface.'  The 
men  started  in  with  a  will.  A  large  pile  of  underclothes 
and  household  linen  was  brought  up  first.  It  was  of 
fine  quality  and  evidently  such  as  would  be  stored  in  the 
bedroom  of  a  house  occupied  by  people  quite  well  to  do. 
Shovels  full  of  jumbled  rubbish  were  thrown  up,  and  the 
odor  of  flesh  became  more  pronounced.  Presently  one 
of  the  men  exposed  a  charred  lump  of  flesh  and  lifted  it 
up  on  the  end  of  a  pitchfork.  It  was  all  that  remained 
of  some  poor  creature  who  had  met  an  awful  death 
between  water  and  fire. 

"  The  trunk  was  put  on  a  cloth,  the  ends  were  looped 
up  making  a  bag  of  it,  and  the  thing  was  taken  to  the 


124  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

river  bank.  It  weighed  probably  thirty  pounds.  A  stake 
was  driven  in  the  ground  to  which  a  tag  was  attached 
giving  a  description  of  the  remains.  This  is  done  in 
many  cases  to  the  burned  bodies,  and  they  lay  covered 
with  cloths  upon  the  bank  until  men  came  with  coffins 
to  remove  them. 

"  Then  the  tag  was  taken  from  the  stakes  and  tacked 
on  the  coffin  lid,  which  was  immediately  closed  up,  as 
identification  was  of  course  out  of  the  question.  There 
is  a  stack  of  coffins  by  the  railroad  bridge.  Sometimes 
a  coffin  is  carried  to  the  spot  on  the  charred  debris  where 
the  find  is  made. 

"  A  party  started  in  early  exploring  the  huge  mass  of 
debris  banked  against  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  bridge. 
This  collection,  consisting  of  trees,  sides  of  houses,  tim- 
ber and  innumerable  articles,  varies  in  thickness  from 
three  or  four  feet  to  twenty  feet.  It  is  about  four  hun- 
dred yards  long  and  as  wide  as  the  river.  There  are 
thousands  of  tons  in  this  vast  pile.  How  many  bodies 
are  buried  there  it  is  impossible  to  say,  but  conservative 
estimates  place  it  at  one  thousand  at  least. 

"  The  corps  of  workmen  who  were  searching  the  ruins 
near  the  Methodist  Church  late  last  evening  were  horri- 
fied by  unearthing  one  hundred  additional  bodies.  The 
great  number  at  this  point  shows  what  may  be  expected 
when  all  have  been  recovered. 

"  In  one  of  the  tents  a  baby  was  born.  The  mother 
is  Mrs.  O'Connor,  whose  husband  was  lost  in  the  flood. 
Both  mother  and  baby  are  doing  well,  in  fact  better  than 
thousands  of  other  poor  sufferers.  The  latest  addition 
to  the  list  of  homeless  victims  of  the  flood  will  in  all 
probably  be  christened  Johnstown  Camp  O'Connor. 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  12$ 

"  The  only  church  totally  destroyed  by  the  flood  was 
St.  John's  Protestant  Episcopal,  which  stood  at  the  cor- 
ner of  Locust  and  Market  streets.  A  sand  bank  now 
marks  its  site.  The  ruins  washed  down  to  the  mass 
above  the  railroad  bridge  and  the  town,  and  lodged  a  lit- 
tle further  up  stream. 

"The  rector,  the  Rev. .A.  P.  Dillon,  formerly  of  Lan- 
caster, Penna.,  was  drowned  with  his  family.  He  was 
last  seen  standing  at  a  window  with  a  child  in  his  arm. 
His  other  arm  was  about  his  wife  and  his  boy  stood  at 
his  side. 

"  Such  houses  as  are  so  damaged  as  to  be  in  danger 
of  falling  are  being  pulled  down.  Others  are  propped 
up  until  the  work  of  repair  can  be  commenced  and 
already  the  work  of  putting  up  frame  structures  is  under 
way. 

"  A  multitude  of  tents  are  standing  where  once  were 
row  after  row  of  substantial  buildings.  They  are  occu- 
pied by  the  militia  and  the  laboring  force,  while  the 
homeless  natives  are  camped  out  on  the  various  hillsides." 


CHAPTER    X. 

MEASURES  for  relief  for  the  sufferers  by  the  flood  were 
promptly  taken  by  the  thoughtful  persons,  even  before 
communication  was  reopened  by  the  afflicted  district. 
From  every  city,  town  and  hamlet  subscriptions  for  the 
Johnstown  sufferers  are  coming  in.  The  distress  caused 
by  this  unparalleled  disaster  is  wide  spread,  and  the  cry 
for  relief  did  not  come  from  Johnstown  alone.  As  soon 
as  it  was  possible  to  reach  the  afflicted  districts  relief 
committees  and  trains  with  clothing,  provisions,  house- 
hold goods,  etc.,  were  sent  there. 

A  correspondent  telegraphed  on  the  second  day  of 
June  to  the  Philadelphia  Times  : 

"  Just  as  Sunday  broke  over  the  valley  of  death  at 
Johnstown  the  first  of  the  impatient  rescuers  who  had 
been  waiting  at  the  borders  broke  into  the  city  precincts. 
Johnstown  is  not  figuratively  but  literally  a  ruin. 

"  Doctor  Wakefield  has  issued  a  call  for  physicians  to 
come,  as  they  are  needed.  There  are  plenty  of  people 
here  with  broken  arms,  legs  and  bruises  that  need  medi- 
cal attention.  Among  the  incidents  is  the  following  :  A 
lady,  her  brother  and  two  children  were  visiting  a  family 
here,  and,  singular  as  it  may  seem,  it  is  said  every  one 
of  the  family  with  which  she  was  visiting  were  drowned, 
while  all  the  visitors  were  saved.  Since  yesterday 
organized  relief  has  taken  the  place  of  disorder  and  con- 
fusion and  the  work  of  distributing  provisions  and  caring 
for  the  wants  of  the  needy  is  now  going  on  with  some 
regulation  and  order.  Adjutant  General  Hastings 
(126) 


THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD.  1 2/ 

arrived  Saturday  night  and  immediately  set  to  work  to 
get  aid  to  those  in  the  greatest  distress.  Hundreds  of 
willing  hands  stood  ready  to  render  assistance,  if  they 
had  somebody  to  direct  them  what  to  do.  Every 
farmer  within  a  large  radius  of  this  place  was  astir  by 
daylight  this  morning,  and,  with  wagons,  drays,  horses 
and  all  kinds  of  conveyances,  were  on  hand  to  haul  pro- 
visions or  do  anything  that  might  be  wanted. 

"  The  relief  train  from  Pittsburg  arrived  at  an  early 
hour  this  morning  and  the  work  of  transferring  the  pro- 
visions from  Sang  Hollow,  the  furthest  point  east 
reached  by  train,  was  begun  at  once.  All  of  Coopers- 
dale,  Cambria  City  and  Sheridan,  below  Johnstown,  and 
what  few  people  are  left  at  Woodvale  and  East  Cone- 
maugh  above  were  supplied  as  fast  as  the  work  of  distri- 
bution could  be  carried  on.  As  is  usual  in  all  such  cases 
of  distress  many  came  here  for  the  purpose  of  pilfering 
and  nearly  every  train  from  Pittsburg  brought  a  lot  of 
toughs  whose  object  is  to  prey  on  the  charity  being 
dispensed  and  rob  those  deserving  of  even  what  little 
they  have  left. 

"  The  few  hours  that  have  intervened  since  the  disaster 
occurred  have  given  people  time  to  consider  the  situa- 
tion, and  instead  of  sitting  down  and  weeping  for  lost 
ones  they  are  actively  engaged  in  taking  care  of  them- 
selves and  assisting  others.  This  principle  seems  to  have 
taken  hold  of  the  brave  people  left  from  the  Johnstown 
flood,  and  many  a  poor  woman  or  man  goes  about  the 
duties  of  the  day  with  a  heart  heavy  for  some  absent  one 
who  was  drowned  or  killed  by  the  crush  of  buildings. 

"  Thousands  of  sight-seers  and  anxious  friends  are 
gathered  about  the  wrecked  city  and  hundreds  of  work- 


128  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

ers  are  busy  taking  out  bodies,  removing  debris  and  car- 
ing for  the  wants  of  survivors.  All  night  long  500  labor- 
ers worked  like  beavers  on  the  railroad  track  and  at  8 
o'clock  Sunday  morning  the  first  train  passed  over  the 
road  from  Sang  Hollow  to  Johnstown.  It  was  received 
all  along  the  line  with  cheers  and  shouts  of  joy  from  the 
hundreds  of  sufferers  who  were  waiting  along  the  track 
eager  to  obtain  the  supplies  contained  in  the  relief  trains, 
three  of  which  lay  in  Sang  Hollow  all  night  waiting  to 
get  through. 

"  The  first  train  to  pass  over  the  reconstructed  track 
was  that  sent  out  by  the  citizens  of  Pittsburg  and  manned 
by  the  Americus  Club  boys. 

"  The  work  of  getting  the  bodies  together  for  easy 
identification  began  this  afternoon.  The  central  point 
was  Morrellville.  On  Fairfield  avenue  is  a  large  vacant 
lot  belonging  to  Frank  Leckey.  At  5  o'clock  this  was 
almost  entirely  covered  with  coffins,  while  between  them, 
and  stooping  over  them,  were  weeping  men  and  women. 

"  Although  the  number  was  short  of  one  hundred  at 
5  o'clock,  others  will  come  in,  and  there  is  no  telling 
what  the  total  will  be.  On  one  rough  box  was  a  piece 
of  paper  with  the  words,  '  Three  children.'  To-night 
they  were  lifted  out  and  all  three  placed  in  one  coffin. 
The  little  bodies  were  almost  naked  and  the  purple 
faces  bruised  and  cut. 

"  The  corpse  of  a  beautiful  young  woman  lay  in  the 
extemporized  morgue.  Several  people  say  that  it  is  that 
of  Miss  Ida  Fischer,  a  prominent  young  lady  of  Johns- 
town. 

"  Only  a  few  hundred  yards  below  the  bridge  a  num- 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  129 

her  of  bodies  had  been  taken  to  private  houses.  They 
were  taken  to  the  Morrellville  morgue  this  afternoon. 

"  St.  Mary's  German  Catholic  Church  stands  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  below  the  bridge.  Its  walls  are  standing,  but 
inside  it  is  filled  with  mixed,  broken  benches  and  ruined 
images.  In  it  were  found  the  mangled  body  of  P. 
Eldridge  and  the  remains  of  several  negroes. 

"  The  distance  to  St.  Columbia's  Catholic  Church  is  a 
half  mile.  The  streets  to  it  are  filled  with  broken  houses 
and  people  in  those  that  were  left  standing  were  busy 
shoveling  mud  from  the  first  floors.  The  scene  at  St. 
Columbia's  Church  was  awful.  Forty  or  fifty  bodies  had 
been  carried  into  it  and  laid  on  the  muddy  seats. 

"  Trenches  were  being  dug  in  Lower  Yoder  Catholic 
Cemetery  and  Grandview  Protestant  Cemetery  this  after- 
noon. The  bodies  that  were  exposed  when  the  waters 
began  falling  are  in  bad  condition.  Some  have  already 
been  interred.  In  the  haste  and  excitement  no  definite 
arrangements  seem  to  have  been  made  for  funeral  ser- 
vices. The  only  suggestion  that  could  be  obtained  at 
Morrellville  was  that  all  the  bodies  would  be  buried  and 
general  memorial  services  held  after  the  present  suffer- 
ing is  alleviated. 

GREAT  ENERGY  SHOWN. 

"  One  remarkable  feature  of  the  disaster  is  the  energy 
with  which  Johnstown  sets  to  work  to  repair  the  ravages 
of  the  flood.  In  every  direction  gangs  of  workmen  are 
burning  the  debris  and  clearing  the  streets,  getting  ready 
for  the  time  when  the  property  holders  may  be  able  to 
rebuild  their  houses.  It  is  because  of  this  that 
the  change  in  the  condition  and  appearance  of  the 
9 


130  TU1-:  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

town  is  so  constant  from  day  to  day.  Whether 
the  city  will  be  soon  rebuilt  is,  however,  another  matter. 
One  great  difficulty  in  the  way  of  rebuilding  will  be 
found  in  the  uncertainty  in  regard  to  party  lines.  The 
city  lots  being  entirely  covered  and  the  landmarks 
obliterated,  it  will  not  be  easy  for  lot-owners  to  locate 
the  exact  bounds  of  their  properties.  Fortunately,  the 
county  seat  being  at  Ebensburg,  the  deeds  have  been 
preserved  and  a  re-survey  is  possible.  When  the  bound- 
aries of  one  lot  in  a  square  are  determined,  the  location 
of  the  others  will  be  comparatively  easy.  When  this  is 
done  there  is  no  question  that  the  city  will  be  rapidly 
rebuilt. 

"  Though  rapid  progress  was  being  made  in  the  work 
on  the  ruins  of  Johnstown,  a  week  after  the  disaster 
the  piles  of  rubbish  were  still  up  to  the  second  story  win- 
dows of  quite  a  number  of  houses  on  Main  street.  A 
great  hinderance  to  progress  was  found  in  the  tangled 
multitude  of  telegraph,  telephone  and  electric  light  wires 
that  were  twisted  into  every  conceivable  shape  and 
tightly  wrapped  around  almost  every  thing.  At  the  raft 
near  the  viaduct  immense  quantities  of  steel  wire  came 
down  from  the  Gautier  Steel  Works.  Much  of  it  was 
barbed,  and  the  laborers  were  terribly  hampered  by  it. 
Their  progress  was  also  impeded  by  the  several  locomo- 
tives and  tenders  that  were  firmly  imbedded  in  the  mass 
and  were  practically  immovable. 

"  Several  stationary  engines  were  located  at  various 
points  through  the  city  and  were  used  to  pull  out  heavy 
timbers  and  tear  apart  buildings  that  resisted  the 
destructive  force  of  the  water,  but  so  solidly  packed  were 
the  piles  that  the  stoutest  cables  were  repeatedly  broken. 


THE  JOHNSTO WN  FLOOD.  1 3 1 

SIXTY    ACRES   OF    BURNING  DEBRIS. 

"  Wandering  over  this  muddy  plain  one  can  realize 
something  of  what  must  have  been  the  gigantic  force  of 
that  vast  whirlpool.  It  pressed  upon  the  town  like  some 
huge  millstone,  weighing  tens  of  thousands  of  tons  and 
revolving  with  awful  velocity,  pounding  to  powder  every- 
thing beneath.  But  the  conception  of  the  power  of  that 
horrible  eddy  of  the  flood  must  remain  feeble  until  the 
sixty  acres  of  burning  debris  is  inspected.  It  seems  from 
a  little  distance  like  any  other  mass  of  wreckage,  though 
vastly  longer  than  ever  before  seen  in  this  country.  It 
must  have  been  many  times  more  tremendous  when  it 
was  heaped  up  twenty  feet  over  its  whole  area  and  before 
the  fire  levelled  it  off.  But  neither  then  nor  now  can  the 
full  terror  of  the  flood  that  piled  it  there  be  adequately 
realized  until  a  trip  across  parts  where  the  fire  has  been 
extinguished  shows  the  manner  in  which  the  stuff  com- 
posing it  is  packed  together. 

"  It  is  not  a  heap  of  broken  timbers  lying  loosely 
thrown  together  in  all  directions.  It  is  a  solid  mass. 
The  boards  and  timbers  which  made  up  the  frame  build- 
ings are  laid  together  as  closely  as  sticks  of  wood  in  a 
pile — more  closely,  for  they  are  welded  into  one  another 
until  each  stick  is  as  solidly 'fixed  in  place  as  though  all 
were  one." 


CHAPTER  XI. 

THE  ORPHANS  OF  THE  FLOOD. 

THE  orphans  of  the  flood — sadly  few  there  are  of  them, 
for  it  was  the  children  that  usually  went  down  first,  not 
the  parents — were  being  looked  after  by  the  Pennsylva- 
nia Children's  Aid  Society,  which  had  transferred  its 
headquarters  for  the  time  being  from  Philadelphia  to 
Johnstown.  There  was  a  thriving  branch  of  this  society 
at  that  place  before  the  flood,  but  of  all  its  officers  and 
executive  force  two  only  are  alive.  Fearing  such  might 
be  the  situation,  the  general  officers  of  the  society  sent 
out  on  the  first  available  train  Miss  H.  E.  Hancock,  one 
of  the  directors,  and  Miss  H.  W.  Hinckley,  the  secre- 
tary. They  arrived  on  the  /th,  and  within  thirty 
minutes  had  an  office  open  in  a  little  cottage  just  above 
the  water  line  in  the  upper  part  of  the  city.  Business 
was  ready  as  soon  as  the  office,  and  there  were  about 
fifty  children  looked  after  before  evening.  In  most  cases 
these  were  children  with  relatives  or  friends  in  or  near 
Johnstown,  and  the  society's  work  has  been  to  identify 
them  and  restore  them  to  their  friends. 

As  soon  as  the  society  opened  its  office  all  cases  in 
which  children  were  involved  were  sent  at  once  to  them, 
and  their  efforts  have  been  of  great  benefit  in  systematiz- 
ing the  care  of  the  children  who  are  left  homeless.  Be- 
sides this,  there  are  many  orphans  who  have  been  living 
in  the  families  of  neighbors  since  the  flood,  but  for  whom 
permanent  homes  must  be  found.  One  family  here  has 
cared  for  157  children  saved  from  the  flood,  and  nearly 
(132) 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.    .  133 

as  many  are  staying  with  other  families.  There  will  be 
no  difficulty  about  providing  for  these  little  ones. 

The  Rev.  Morgan  Dix,  on  behalf  of  the  Leake  and 
Watts  Orphan  Home  in  New  York,  has  telegraphed  an 
offer  to  care  for  seventy-five  orphans.  Pittsburg  has 
been  proving  itself  generous  in  this  as  in  all  other  mat- 
ters relating  to  the  flood,  and  other  places  all  over  the 
country  are  telegraphing  offers  of  homes  for  the  homeless. 
Superintendent  Pierson  of  the  Indianapolis  Natural  Gas 
Company  has  asked  for  two  ;  Cleveland  wanted  some ; 
Altoona  would  like  a  few  ;  Apollo,  Pa.,  has  vacancies  the 
orphans  can  fill,  and  scores  of  other  small  places  are  send- 
ing in  similar  offers  and  requests.  A  queer  thing  is  that 
many  of  the  offers  are  restricted  by  curious  provisions  as 
to  the  religious  belief  of  the  orphans.  The  Rev.  D. 
Griffiths,  for  instance,  of  1420  Chestnut  street,  Philadel- 
phia, says  that  the  Angora  (Pa.)  Home  would  like  some 
orphans,  "especially  Baptist  ones,"  and  Father  Field  oi 
Twentieth  and  Cherry  streets,  Philadelphia,  offers  to  look 
after  a  few  Episcopal  wails. 

The  work  of  the  society  here  has  been  greatly  assisted 
by  the  fact  that  Miss  Maggie  Brooks,  formerly  secre- 
tary of  the  Johnstown  society  here,  but  living  in  Phila- 
delphia at  the  time  of  the  flood,  has  come  there  to  assist 
the  general  officers.  Her  acquaintance  with  the  town 
was  invaluable. 

The  secretary  of  the  society  on  the  nth  of  June  pre- 
pared a  statement  for  publication,  the  purpose  of  which 
was  to  correct  a  widespread  impression  that  Johnstown 
is  full  of  orphan  children.  It  is  as  follows: 

"  From  private  citizens  and  from  generous  institutions 
throughout  the  United  States  telegrams  and  letters  have 


134  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

been  steadily  pouring  in  ever  since  the  disaster.  Each 
bears  in  substance  the  same  warm-hearted  message : 
'  Send  us  the  destitute  little  ones  from  Johnstown.'  The 
fact  is  that  the  loss  of  life  from  the  violence  of  the  flood 
has  been  one  of  the  most  pathetic  features  of  the  Johns- 
town tragedy.  This  fact  is  shown  to  be  true,  not  only 
from  the  number  of  silent  little  forms  brought  to  the 
morgues  next  door,  but  that  almost  every  family  caught 
by  the  Johnstown  flood  now  mourns  a  lost  child.  Adults 
were  often  saved  by  their  strength  and  the  judgment 
used  in  self-preservation,  but  the  children  were  swept 
away  from  their  parents  and  friends.  Every  relief  agency 
here  is  taxed  to  its  utmost  to  help  stricken  families,  and 
the  work  for  children  is  incessant.  The  Johnstown 
ladies  will  need  for  months  to  come  all  the  sympathy 
and  help  that  can  be  sent,  but  there  seems  to  be  at  pres- 
ent more  need  of  uniting  families  than  of  sending  away 
children  from  Johnstown.  Children  reported,  in  the 
confusion  of  the  past  day,  as  being  destitute  orphans, 
have  been  claimed  in  the  majority  of  cases  by  friends  or 
relatives.  Before  closing,  in  behalf  of  the  Johnstown 
Children's  Aid  Society,  I  wish  to  acknowledge  the  con- 
stant courtesy  shown  by  headquarters  and  the  various 
relief  agencies  to  this  office. 

"  HELEN  WALLACE  HINCKLEY, 

Secretary  Children's  Aid  Society  of  Pennsylvania,  69 
Adams  street,  Johnstown." 

AT  THE  RELIEF  STATIONS. 

A  correspondent  of  the  New  York  Srm,  on  June  /th, 
thus  described  scenes  at  the  relief  station  : 

"  The  first  thing  that  Johnstown  people  do  in  the  morn- 


THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FL  OOD.  1 3  5 

ing  is  to  go  to  the  relief  stations  and  get  something  to 
eat.  They  go  carrying  big  baskets,  and  their  endeavor 
is  to  get  all  they  can.  There  has  been  a  new  system 
every  day  about  the  manner  of  dispensing  the  food  and 
clothing  to  the  sufferers.  At  first  the  supplies  were 
placed  where  people  could  help  themselves.  Then  they 
were  placed  in  yards  and  handed  to  people  over  the 
fences.  Then  people  had  to  get  orders  for  what  they 
wanted  from  the  Citizens'  Committee,  and  their  orders 
were  filled  at  the  different  relief  stations.  Now  the  whole 
matter  of  receiving  and  dispensing  relief  supplies  has 
been  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the 
Republic  men.  Thomas  A.  Stewart,  Commander  of  the 
Department  of  Pennsylvania,  G.  A.  R.,  arrived  yesterday 
with  his  staff  and  established  his  headquarters  in  a  tent 
on  Adams  street,  near  the  headquarters  of  the  Citizens' 
Committee,  and  opposite  the  temporary  Post  Office. 
Over  this  tent  floats  Commander  Stewart's  flag,  with 
purple  border,  bearing  the  arms  of  the  State  of  Pennsyl- 
vania. The  members  of  his  staff  are :  Quartermaster- 
General  Tobin  Taylor  and  his  assistant,  H.  J.  Williams, 
Chaplain  John  W.  Sayres,  and  W.  V.  Lawrence,  Quar- 
termaster-General of  the  Ohio  department  The  Grand 
Army  men  have  made  the  Adams  street  relief  station  a 
central  relief  station,  and  all  the  others  at  Kernsville,  the 
Pennsylvania  depot,  Cambria  City,  and  Jackson  and 
Somerset  streets,  sub-stations.  The  idea  is  to  distribute 
supplies  to  the  sub-stations  from  the  central  station,  and 
thus  avoid  the  jam  of  crying  and  excited  people  at  the 
committee's  headquarters. 

"  The  Grand  Army  men  have  appointed  a  committee 
of  women  to  assist  them  in  their  work.     The  women  go 


1 36  THE  JOHNSTO WN  FLOOD. 

from  house  to  house,  ascertaining  the  number  of  people 
quartered  there,  the  number  of  people  lost  from  there  in 
the  flood,  and  the  exact  needs  of  the  people.  It  was 
found  necessary  to  have  some  such  committee  as  this, 
for  there  were  women  actually  starving  who  were  too 
proud  to  take  their  places  in  line  with  the  other  women 
with  bags  and  baskets.  Some  of  these  people  were  rich 
before  the  flood.  Now  they  are  not  worth  a  dollar.  A 
Sun  reporter  was  told  of  one  man  who  was  reported  to 
be  worth  $100,000  before  the  flood,  but  who  now  is  pen- 
niless, and  who  has  to  take  his  place  in  the  line  along 
with  others  seeking  the  necessaries  of  life. 

"  Though  the  Adams  street  station  is  now  the  central 
relief  station,  the  most  imposing  display  of  supplies  is 
made  at  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  freight  and  passenger 
depots.  Here  on  the  platforms  and  in  the  yards  are 
piled  up  barrels  of  flour  in  long  rows,  three  and  four 
barrels  high  ;  biscuits  in  cans  and  boxes  where  car  loads 
of  them  have  been  dumped,  crackers  under  the  railroad 
sheds  in  bins,  hams  by  the  hundred  strung  on  poles, 
boxes  of  soap  and  candles,  barrels  of  kerosene  oil,  stacks 
of  canned  goods,  and  things  to  eat  of  all  sorts  and  kinds. 
The  same  is  visible  at  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  road,  and 
there  is  now  no  fear  of  a  food  famine  in  Johnstown, 
though  of  course  everybody  will  have  to  rough  it  for 
weeks.  What  is  needed  most  in  this  line  is  cooking 
utensils.  Johnstown  people  want  stoves,  kettles,  pans, 
knives  and  forks.  All  the  things  that  have  been  sent  so 
far  have  been  sent  with  the  evident  idea  of  supplying  an 
instant  need,  and  that  is  right  and  proper,  but  it  would 
be  well  now  if,  instead  of  some  of  the  provisions  that 
are  sent,  cooking  utensils  would  arrive.  Fifty  stoves 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  137 

arrived  from  Pittsburg  this  morning,  and  it  is  said  that 
more  are  coming. 

"  At  both  the  depots  where  the  supplies  are  received 
and  stored  a  big  rope  line  encloses  them  in  an  improptu 
yard,  so  as  to  give  room  to  those  having  them  in  charge 
to  walk  around  and  see  what  they  have  got.  On  the 
inside  of  this  line,  too,  stalk  back  and  forth  the  soldiers, 
with  their  rifles  on  their  shoulders,  and  beside  the  lines, 
pressing  against  the  ropes,  there  stands  every  day,  from 
daylight  until  dawn,  a  crowd  of  women  with  big  baskets, 
who  make  piteous  appeals  to  the  soldiers  to  give  them 
food  for  their  children  at  once  before  the  order  of  the 
relief  committee.  Those  to  whom  supplies  are  dealt 
out  at  the  stations  have  to  approach  in  a  line,  and  this 
is  fringed  with  soldiers,  Pittsburg  policemen,  and  deputy 
sheriffs,  who  see  that  the  children  and  weak  women  are  not 
crowded  out  of  their  places  by  the  stronger  ones.  The 
supplies  are  not  given  in  large  quantities,  but  the  appli- 
cants are  told  to  come  again  in  a  day  or  so  and  more 
will  be  given  them.  The  women  complain  against  this 
bitterly,  and  go  away  with  tears  in  their  eyes,  declaring 
that  they  have  not  been  given  enough.  Other  women 
utter  broken  words  of  thankfulness  and  go  away,  their 
faces  wreathed  in  smiles. 

"  Last  night  something  in  the  nature  of  a  raid  was 
made  by  Father  McTahney,  one  of  the  Catholic  priests 
here,  on  the  houses  of  some  people  whom  he  suspected 
of  having  imposed  upon  the  relief  committee.  These 
persons  represented  that  they  were  destitute,  and  sent 
their  children  with  baskets  to  the  relief  stations,  each 
child  getting  supplies  for  a  different  family.  There  are 
unquestionably  many  such  cases.  Father  McTahney 


1 3  8  THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD. 

found  that  his  suspicions  were  correct  in  a  great  many 
cases,  and  he  brought  back  and  made  the  wrongdoers 
bring  back  the  provisions  which  they  had  obtained  under 
false  pretences. 

"  The  side  tracks  at  both  the  Pennsylvania  and  Balti- 
more and  Ohio  Railroad  depots  are  filled  with  cars  sent 
from  different  places  bearing  relief  supplies  to  Johns- 
town. The  cars  are  nearly  all  freight  cars,  and  they  con- 
tain the  significant  inscriptions  of  the  railroad  officials  : 
'  This  car  is  on  time  freight.  It  is  going  to  Johnstown, 
and  must  not  be  delayed  under  any  circumstances.' 
Then  there  are  the  ponderous  labels  of  the  towns  and 
associations  sending  the  supplies.  They  read  this  way  : 
'This  car  for  Johnstown  with  supplies  for  the  sufferers.' 
'  Braddock  relief  for  Johnstown.'  '  The  contributions  of 
Beaver  Falls  to  Johnstown.'  The  cars  from  Pittsburg 
had  no  inscriptions.  Some  cars  had  merely  the  inscrip- 
tion in  great  big  black  letters  on  a  white  strip  of  cloth 
running  the  length  of  the  car :  '  Johnstown.'  One  car 
reads  on  it,  '  Stations  along  the  route  fill  this  car  with 
supplies  for  Johnstown,  and  don't  delay  it.'  The  sup- 
plies from  Cleveland  were  said  to  be  exceptionally  fine. 
There  were  bales  of  fine  new  blankets  from  the  manufac- 
turers, the  best  thing  that  could  be  sent. 

"  Money  is  pouring  into  Johnstown  as  fast  as  the 
Finance  Committee  will  let  it.  That  is  to  say,  the  com- 
mittee have  announced  their  wish  that  money  be  not 
sent  to  Johnstown  yet,  as  the  town  is  not  yet  ready  for 
it.  People  feel  encouraged,  as  well  they  may,  over  the 
liberal  contributions  that  have  been  made  for  them. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

CRAZED  BY  THEIR  SUFFERINGS. 

•»'  WHEN  the  great  wave  of  death  swept  througn  Johns- 
town, the  people  who  had  any  chance  of  escape  ran 
hither  and  thither  in  every  direction.  They  did  not  have 
any  definite  idea  where  they  were  going,  only  that  a 
crest  of  foaming  waters  as  high  as  the  housetops  was 
roaring  down  upon  them  through  the  Conemaugh,  and 
that  they  must  get  out  of  the  way  of  that.  Some  in 
their  terror  dived  into  the  cellars  of  their  houses,  though 
this  was  certain  death.  Others  got  up  on  the  roofs  of 
their  houses  and  dambered  over  the  adjoining  roofs  to 
places  of  safety.  But  the  majority  made  for  the  hills, 
which  girt  the  town  like  giants.  Of  the  people  who 
went  to  the  hills  the  water  caught  some  in  its  whirl.  The 
others  clung  to  trees  and  roots  and  pieces  of  debris 
which  had  temporarily  lodged  near  the  banks,  and  man- 
aged to  save  themselves.  These  people  either  stayed 
out  on  the  hills  wet  and  in  many  instances  naked,  all 
night,  or  they  managed  to  find  farm  houses  which 
sheltered  them.  There  was  a  fear  of  going  back  to  the 
vicinity  of  the  tovvn.  Even  the  people  whose  houses  the 
water  did  not  reach  abandoned  their  homes  and  began 
to  think  of  all  of  Johnstown  as  a  city  buried  beneath  the 
water.  But  in  the  houses  which  were  thus  able  to  afford 
shelter  there  was  not  food  enough  for  all.  Many  sur- 
vivors of  the  flood  went  hungry  until  the  first  relief  sup- 
plies arrived  from  Pittsburg.  From  all  this  fright,  des- 
titution, and  exposure  is  coming  nervous  shock,  cul- 

(139) 


140  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

ruinating  in  insanity,  pneumonia,  fever,  and  all  forms  of 
disease.  When  these  people  came  back  to  Johnstown 
on  the  day  after  the  wreck  of  the  town  they  had  to  put 
up  in  sheds,  barns,  and  in  houses  which  had  been  but 
partially  ruined.  They  had  to  sleep  without  any  cover- 
ing in  their  wet  clothes,  and  it  took  the  liveliest  kind  of 
skirmishing  to  get  anything  to  eat.  Pretty  soon  a 
citizens'  committee  was  established,  and  for  a  fact  nearly 
all  the  male  survivors  of  the  flood  were  immediately 
sworn  in  as  deputy  sheriffs.  They  adorned  themselves 
with  tin  stars,  which  they  cut  out  of  pieces  of  the  sheet 
metal  in  the  ruins,  and  sheets  of  tin  with  stars  cut  out  of 
them  are  turning  up  continually,  to  the  surprise  of  the 
Pittsburg  workmen  who  are  endeavoring  to  get  the 
town  in  shape.  The  women  and  children  were  housed, 
as  far  as  possible,  in  the  few  houses  still  standing,  and 
some  idea  of  the  extent  of  the  wreck  of  the  town  may 
be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  of  300  prominent  build- 
ings only  1 6  are  uninjured. 

For  the  first  day  or  so  people  were  dazed  by  what  had 
happened,  and  for  that  matter  they  are  dazed  still.  They 
went  about  helpless,  making  vague  inquiries  for  their 
friends  and  hardly  feeling  the  desire  to  eat  anything. 
Finally  the  need  of  creature  comforts  overpowered  them, 
and  they  woke  up  to  the  fact  that  they  were  faint  and 
sick.  Now  this  is  to  some  extent  changed  by  the  arrival 
of  tents  and  by  the  systematic  military  care  for  the  suffer- 
ing. But  the  daily  life  of  a  Johnstown  man,  who  is  a 
refugee  in  his  own  city,  is  still  aimless  and  wandering. 
His  property,  his  home,  and,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  his 
wife  and  children  are  gone.  The  chances  are  that  he 
has  hard  work  to  find  the  spot  where  he  and  his  family 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  141 

once  lived  and  were  happy.  He  meditates  suicide,  and 
even  looks  on  the  strangers  who  have  flocked  in  to  help 
him,  and  to  put  him  and  his  town  on  their  feet  again, 
with  a  kind  of  sullen  anger.  He  has  frequent  conflicts 
with  the  soldiers  and  sightseers,  and  he  is  just  crazy 
enough  to  do  anything. 

One  night  a  young  Lieutenant  in  the  Fourteenth 
Regiment  from  Pittsburg,  which  was  doing  guard  duty, 
got  drunk  and  went  around  flourishing  a  pistol  and 
abusing  people.  He  tried  to  force  his  way  through  the 
wreck  at  a  place  where  the  Sheriff  had  issued  strict 
orders  that  no  one  should  be  allowed  to  pass.  The 
military  here  are  under  the  control  of  the  civil  power, 
and  Gen.  Hastings  refuses  to  issue  passes  to  the  most 
important  parts  of  town  now  unless  they  are  counter- 
signed by  Sheriff  Steinman.  The  man  on  guard  at  the 
place  where  the  Lieutenant  tried  to  pass  refused  to  let 
the  officer  go  by.  The  officer  swore  like  a  pirate,  and 
threatened  to  pound  the  deputy. 

"  So  help  me  God,  sir,"  said  the  deputy,  "  if  you  try 
to  go  by  me  I  will  shoot  you  like  a  dog.  I  have  lost  my 
wife  and  all  my  children  here,  and  I  don't  care  what 
becomes  of  me." 

The  Lieutenant  did  not  say  anything  further.  He 
went  away,  and  was  soon  placed  under  arrest  by  his 
commanding  officer.  Mrs.  D.  S.  Lane  had  to  be  taken 
away  insane.  Her  husband  kept  a  shoe  store  on  Morris 
street,  the  family  living  in  Kernsville.  The  couple  are 
quite  aged  and  lost  all  their  children  and  property  in  the 
flood.  Mrs.  Lane  brooded  over  the  calamity  to  such 
an  extent  that  her  mind  became  affected,  and  her  hus- 
band was  obliged  to  take  her  away  to  an  asylum. 


142  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

Governor  Beaver's  conference  with  Mayor  Fitler  of 
Philadelphia,  the  8th  of  June,  and  others,  and  his  per- 
sonal visit  to  Johnstown  and  return  to  Philadelphia 
between  Saturday  night  and  Monday  afternoon,  have 
been  of  great  value  in  clearing  up  matters  that  were  get- 
ting into  some  entanglement.  It  is  now  understood  that 
there  is  a  clear  line  of  demarcation  between  the  relief  of 
destitution  and  suffering — including  all  that  relates  to  the 
care  of  the  sick  and  injured  and  the  burial  of  the  dead — 
on  the  one  hand,  and  the  clearing  out  of  blockaded 
rivers,  and  the  prevention  of  such  pollution  and  poison- 
ing of  their  waters  as  might  spread  disease  through  a 
score  of  counties  distant  from  the  devastated  districts. 
While  the  purely  charitable  work  belongs  to  the  juris- 
diction of  the  authorities  and  committees  in  charge  of 
the  funds  contributed  for  relief  by  the  benevolent  upris- 
ing of  the  people — the  work  of  removing  the  obstructions 
and  pollution  from  scores  and,  perhaps,  hundreds  of 
miles  of  river  beds  goes  properly  under  the  jurisdiction 
of  the  State,  and  should  be  dealt  with  under  the  super- 
vision of  State  authorities.  No  part  of  the  relief  fund 
proper  contributed  by  popular  subscription  is  to  be  used 
for  this  State  service. 

It  is  a  further  result  of  the  conferences  which  the  Gov- 
ernor has  been  holding  that  from  and  after  Wednesday 
the  1 2th,  General  Hastings  is  in  command  at  Johns- 
town, and  that  the  Governor  has  appointed  an  Advisory 
Commission,  selected  from  well-known  citizens  in  whom 
the  public  have  learned  to  place  confidence — to  exercise 
general  supervision  and  direction  over  the  whole  work 
and  whole  field  of  relief. 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD,  143 

GENERAL  HASTINGS  IN  COMMAND. 

General  Hastings,  having  divided  the  ruined  area  into 
districts,  on  the  I2th  began  putting  contractors  or  sub- 
contractors in  charge  of  each.  He  caused  these  men  to 
come  to  his  headquarters,  where  he  instructed  them 
that  they  must  find  their  own  tools  and  supplies  for  their 
workmen,  and  that  their  operations  would  be  under  the 
supervision  of  engineers  directly  responsible  to  him. 

It  is  estimated  that  at  the  rate  at  which  the  work  of 
removing  the  drift  above  the  stone  bridge  had  been  done, 
about  three  weeks  more  would  be  required  to  tear  it 
apart,  burning  what  is  taken  off  the  sides  and  sending 
down  the  river  the  material  coming  out  of  the  channel 
that  is  being  cut  upward  through  the  stream  from  the 
bridge.  The  most  difficult  part  of  this  work  is  in  mak- 
ing the  channel,  as  the  logs,  boards,  etc.,  are  interlocked 
in  every  way,  and  the  interstices  packed  with  stones, 
brick,  house  plaster,  sand  and  general  debris,  but  there 
are  additional  hoisting  engines  ready  to  begin  loosening 
and  dragging  logs.  With  these  engines  and  the  addi- 
tional force  of  wood-choppers  and  other  workmen 
expected  to  be  on  the  drift  by  the  end  of  this  week,  it  is 
believed  by  Contractor  William  Flinn  and  others,  that 
this  great  obstruction  can  be  cleared  away  within  the 
next  eight  or  ten  days.  It  is  thought  that  at  least  1500 
men,  or  three  times  as  many  as  were  employed  on  the 
drift  on  previous  days,  could  be  used  there  advantage- 
ously. Now  that  number  could  be  increased  as  the 
channel  is  lengthened.  The  cutting  right  and  left 
from  the  channel  will  be  much  easier  than  the  present 
work,  as  has  been  demonstrated  by  such  cutting  near 
the  bridge.  The  main  difficulty  in  working  at  the  sides 


144  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

of  the  drift  is  in  dragging  the  material  out  on  land,  to  be 
burned. 

The  first  real  work  under  the  supervision  of  the  State 
commenced  on  the  I3th  of  June  at  6  o'clock  a.  m.  The 
whistle  at  the  Cambria  Iron  and  Steel  Works  was  the 
signal  for  the  men  to  commence,  and  about  1 500  started  in 
with  their  picks  and  shovels.  The  early  morning  was 
warm  and  cloudy,  and  the  fumes  and  odors  from  the 
decayed  bodies  was  something  almost  unbearable.  As 
the  morning  advanced  the  weather  grew  warmer,  and  by 
10  o'clock  the  sun  was  shining  brightly  and  every  one 
on  the  ground  was  hard  at  work. 

During  the  morning  a  crowd  of  worthless  loafers  in 
some  manner  secured  an  entrance  to  the  town,  and 
wanted  to  inaugurate  a  strike  among  the  workmen. 
Some  of  the  laborers  were  already  dissatisfied  at  having 
new  bosses  over  them,  and  only  wanted  a  chance  to  com- 
plain. James  Me  Knight,  of  Pittsburg,  of  the  State  con- 
tractors, got  wind  of  the  trouble  brewing,  and  went 
among  the  men  and  informed  them  that  he  would  have 
no  kicking,  and  that  all  those  who  wished  to  quit  would 
have  to  do  so  immediately,  and  about  100  of  the  men 
left,  but  the  loafers  remained  around,  and  Mr.  McKnight 
went  to  General  Hastings  and  demanded  protection  for 
his  men.  A  detachment  of  militia  from  the  Fourteenth 
Regiment  were  detailed  to  the  place,  and  drove  away  all 
the  men  who  refused  to  work.  This  caused  General 
Hastings  to  issue  an  order  to  the  soldiers  not  to  admit 
any  one  to  Johnstown  proper  without  an  order. 

SEVERAL  STORES  OPENED. 

The  business  men  of  the  town  seemed  to  have  awak- 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  145 

ened  to  their  senses,  and  a  number  of  them  were  prepar- 
ing to  start  over  again  in  business.  Two  grocery  stores 
were  started  near  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  freight 
station.  Both  places  were  doing  a  land  office  business 
and  this  encouraged  other  merchants  to  start  up,  and 
the  probabilities  are  that  inside  of  a  week,  at  least,  a 
hundred  stores  will  be  in  operation.  Already  two  barber 
shops  and  one  jewelry  store  have  been  opened. 

GOOD  NEWS. 

Captain  Seers,  of  the  United  States  Army,  one  of  the 
corps  of  engineers  at  Willet's  Point,  and  Captain  Bur- 
bank,  of  the  West  Point  Engineering  Corps,  have  laid 
out  the  different  boroughs  in  five  districts,  and  compe- 
tent men  have  been  appointed  to  take  charge  of  each 
district.  Captain  Seers,  in  an  interview,  said  :  "  I  am 
only  here  to  advise  General  Hastings,  and  do  what  I  can 
to  help  him.  I  think  that  inside  of  two  weeks  the 
3000  or  4000  men  that  will  be  at  work  will  succeed  in 
putting  the  town  in  very  good  condition,  and  I  think 
inside  of  a  month  Johnstown  will  have  almost  recovered 
from  this  terrible  shock." 

THE    LATEST    ESTIMATE   OF    LOSS   OF    LIFE. 

The  general  opinion  among  well  posted  people  here  is 
that  the  loss  of  life  will  be  between  3000  and  4000. 

It  was  generally  given  out  that  Johnstown  and 
boroughs  adjoining  had  a  population  of  35,000  people, 
but  this  is  a  very  high  estimate,  and  conservative  people 
put  the  population  between  25,000  and  28,000.  Colonel 
Rogers,  who  has  charge  of  the  registration,  states  that, 
from  all  he  can  learn,  the  population  only  amounted  to 
about  25,000,  and  this  accounts  for  10,000  supposed  to 
10 


146  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

be  lost.  The  reports  sent  out  from  here  to  the  effect 
that  12,000  to  15,000  people  were  missing  were  based 
upon  the  suppositioa  that  there  were  35,000  inhabitants 
in  these  boroughs.  The  reports  as  to  the  number  of 
bodies  recovered  at  different  points  along  the  flooded 
districts  are  very  conflicting.  Supposed  official  reports 
have  been  sent  in  by  different  persons,  and  these  are 
also  conflicting,  and  put  the  number  of  bodies  recovered 
anywhere  from  1 100  to  1800.  Consequently  there  is  no 
telling  how  many  bodies  have  been  recovered. 

PASSENGERS  LOST  FROM  THE  DAY  EXPRESS. 

The  following  is  the  only  full  and  complete  list  of 
passengers  lost  from  the  Day  Express  on  the  Pennsyl- 
vania road  at  East  Conemaugh  on  the  day  of  the  flood : 

Miss  Long,  Curwensville,  Pa.,  body  recovered.  She 
had  three  children  in  her  charge,  but  they  have  not  been 
found. 

Cyrus  Schenck,  Reading,  Pa. 

Miss  J.  B.  Ralney,  of  Kalamazoo,  Mich. 

Miss  Paulson,  of  Pittsburg. 

Miss  Bryan,  of  Philadelphia. 

Mr.  Ross,  a  cripple,  residence  unknown. 

Mr.  Ewing,  Ligonier,  Pa.,  body  not  found. 

Manager  of  the  Mansfield,  Pa.,  Base  Ball  Club,  name 
unknown,  body  not  found. 

E.  Lyon,  of  New  York,  body  not  found. 

F.  Phillips,  colored  porter  on  the  Pullman  car,  resi- 
dence Thirty-eighth  street,  Philadelphia. 

W.  Shelley,  Newark,  N.  J.,  body  not  found. 
Mrs.  J.  F.  King,  residence  unknown,  body  not  recov» 
ered. 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  147 

Anna  Bates,  companion  of  Mrs.  King,  body  not  recov- 
ered. 

Mrs.  Swineford,  New  Berlin,  O.,  aged  70  years,  weight 
about  150  pounds  ;  body  not  recovered. 

Mrs.  Edward  Swineford,  St.  Louis,  Mo. ;  destination, 
Middleboro',  Pa. ;  body  not  found. 

Mrs.  McCoy,  body  recovered  and  buried. 

Two  boys,  sons  of  Mrs.  McCoy,  bodies  not  recovered. 

Mrs.  H.  K.  Smith  and  child,  three  years  of  age  ;  bodies 
not  recovered. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

AN  IMPORTANT  MEETING. 

first  decisive  step  toward  putting  Johnstown's 
business  men  on  their  feet  again  was  made  on  the  I3th 
of  June,  when  about  200  merchants  who  had  survived 
the  flood,  many  of  them  without  a  dollar,  met  Adjutant- 
General  Hastings,  and  were  assured  that  they  would  be 
re-established  in  business  on  long  credit.  Both  Pitts- 
burg  and  Philadelphia  wholesalers  have  offered  Johns- 
town merchants  this  business  courtesy.  The  meeting 
turned  out  to  be  an  ovation  to  General  Hastings. 

The  meeting  was  opened  by  the  Adjutant-General, 
who  said  : 

"  I  have  been  directed  to  clear  the  streets  of  Johns- 
town in  order  that  merchants  may  be  enabled  to  get  to 
and  from  their  business  places.  Our  work  is  progress- 
ing rapidly  and  vigorously,  and  the  best  thing  for  Johns- 
town merchants  to  do  is  to  begin  business  over  again. 
I  have  communicated  with  eastern  firms,  who  offer  to 
assist  you  if  you  will  resume  business  in  this  city. 

"  I  would  suggest  that  you  build  temporary  structures 
for  the  present,  until  more  favorable  circumstances  war- 
rant the  erection  of  permanent  establishments.  Word 
has  been  received  from  a  large  number  of  Pittsburg 
houses,  offering  to  stock  your  stores  with  a  full  line  of 
first-class  goods  on  long  credit.  I  advise  you  to  improve 
this  opportunity,  and  when  in  the  course  of  time  matters 
take  a  more  tangible  shape  you  will  be  able  to  repay  all 
losses  incurred. 
('48) 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  149 

"  In  conclusion,  let  me  say  that  all  those  in  need  of 
relief  should  immediately  make  their  wants  known  to  me. 
No  one  should  go  hungry  when  they  can  have  plenty  to 
eat  for  the  asking.  We  will  provide  shelter  and  clothes 
for  all  sufferers  and  try  in  every  way  to  help  the  needy 
ones  as  much  as  we  can.  I  am  anxious  to  see  Johns- 
town resume  her  own  government  as  speedily  as  pos- 
sible, and,  while  we  have  no  martial  law  to  prevent  the 
people  from  passing  through  the  streets  unmolested,  we 
will  keep  the  troops  here  to  check  all  unwelcome  visitors, 
such  as  sight-seers,  vandals  and  so  forth." 

Hearty  applause  followed,  and  several  merchants  spoke 
out  to  say  that  they  were  already  making  arrangements 
to  resume  business. 

Joseph  Morgan,  Jr.,  of  the  Cambria  Iron  And  Steel 
Company,  stated  that  they  had  thrown  open  their  doors, 
ready  to  receive  orders,  and  would  resume  operations  in 
the  works  at  once.  He  agreed  with  the  views  of  Adju- 
tant-General Hastings  on  vandalism,  and  spoke  of  the 
necessity  for  barring  out  all  persons  from  the  ruins  while 
the  work  of  clearing  the  city  was  in  progress. 

"  I  thank  God,"  said  Colonel  Linton,  the  next  speaker, 
"  for  the  new  regime  is  managing  the  Relief  Committee, 
which  helps  men  by  teaching  them  to  help  themselves. 
I  am  satisfied  that  united  action  will  drag  us  out  of  the 
slough  of  despond,  and  there  is  no  doubt  of  the  future  of 
the  town." 

The  last  words  of  Colonel  Linton's  speech  were  lost  in 
a  round  of  applause.  Upon  the  suggestion  of  General 
Hastings,  the  Colonel  dictated  the  following  resolutions  : 

Resolved,  That  the  merchants  and  business  men  of 
Johnstown  assembled  at  the  request  of  Adjutant- 


150  7 HE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

General  Hastings,  having  listened  with  gratification  to 
his  remarks,  agree  to  secure  as  rapidly  as  possible  the 
resumption  of  business  and  to  furnish  the  committee  all 
the  provisions  required. 

Resolved  further,  That  each  merchant  and  business 
man  in  Johnstown  use  his  best  efforts  to  restore  by  his 
own  exertions  his  property  and  that  of  the  community 
at  large. 

Resolved,  That  the  business  men  and  merchants  of 
Johnstown  tender  their  hearty  thanks  to  Adjutant-Gen- 
eral Hastings  for  his  kindly  suggestions  and  offers  of 
aid. 

The  meeting  then  closed  with  the  taking  down  of  the 
names  and  occupations  of  the  business  men  present  in 
order  to  assist  General  Hastings  in  his  work  of  relief. 

REPORT  OF  THE  TRANSPORTATION  BUREAU. 

The  report  of  the  Bureau  of  Transportation,  which 
died  with  the  Citizens'  Relief  Committee,  was  presented 
to  James  B.  Scott  June  I2th.  It  shows  that  from  June  4th 
to  nth  inclusive,  1592  people  were  given  free  transporta- 
tion out  of  Johnstown.  Out  of  these,  872  were  over  the 
Pennsylvania  and  720  over  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio. 

One  hundred  and  seventy-six  were  sent  to  Pittsburg  by 
the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  and  636  over  the  Pennsylvania : 
157  were  sent  to  Philadelphia  over  the  Baltimore  and 
Ohio.  The  Bureau  of  Information  answered  287  tele- 
grams and  68  letters,  mostly  inquiries  from  anxious 
friends  as  to  the  safety  of  Johnstowners. 

FOR    THE  RELIEF  OF  THE  SUFFERERS. 

A  plan  for  the  concentration  and  distribution  of  the 
various  funds  now  being  collected  for  the  benefit  of  the 


THE  JOHNSTO II ',V  FLOOD.  1 5  i 

sufferers  by  the  recent  flood  was  arranged  on  the  I3th 
of  June,  at  a  conference  between  Governor  Beaver  and 
Mayor  Fitler,  Thomas  Dolan,  Robert  C.  Ogden,  John 
Y.  Huber  and  Francis  B.  Reeves. 

The  conference  was  held  at  the  Hotel  Lafayette,  Phil- 
adelphia, Governor  Beaver  telegraphing,  while  on  his 
way  from  Harrisburg,  that  he  would  meet  the  represen- 
tatives of  the  Citizens'  Permanent  Relief  Committee  of 
Philadelphia  there  on  his  arrival. 

The  formulation  of  the  plan  had  been  left  to  the  Gov- 
ernor, and  when  the  gentlemen  above  mentioned  had 
assembled,  he  laid  before  them  the  following  letter 
addressed  to  Mayor  Fitler,  which  contains  his  opinion 
as  to  how  the  funds  should  be  spent. 

"  My  Dear  Sir. — Impressed  with  the  sacredness  of  the 
trust  which  has  been  entrusted  to  me  in  part  by  gener- 
ous donors  in  this  country  and  abroad  for  the  relief  of 
the  sufferers  by  the  late  disastrous  floods  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, especially  in  the  Conemaugh  and  West  Branch 
Valleys,  I  have  called  to  my  aid  the  experience,  ability 
and  well-known  character  of  a  number  of  prominent 
gentlemen  of  Pennsylvania,  to  assist  me  in  making  the 
distribution  of  the  funds  in  my  hands  and  such  other 
moneys  as  may  be  entrusted  to  them. 

"  After  careful  consideration  and  consultation  I  have 
appointed  as  a  commission  to  aid  me  in  this  work  the 
following  gentlemen:  Edwin  H.  Fitler, Thomas  Dolan, 
Robert  C.  Ogden,  John  Y.  Huber  and  Francis  B.  Reeves, 
Philadelphia;  James  B.  Scott,  Reuben  Miller,  S.  S.  Mar- 
vin, Pittsburg  ;  John  Fulton,  Johnstown;  H.  J.  Cummin, 
Williamsport.  I  respectfully  suggest  that  these  gentle- 
men should  visit  the  stricken  districts  at  once,  so  as  to 


1 5  2  THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  l-'L  OOD. 

determine  the  directions  in  which  the  funds  entrusted  to 
them  should  go  beyond  the  supply  of  food,  clothing, 
bedding,  etc.,  which  is  regularly  and  systematically 
going  on.  Will  you  please  consult  the  Philadelphia 
members  of  the  commission  and  let  me  know  their 
views  as  to  the  proposed  visit,  and  when  it  can  be  made, 
and  I  will  communicate  with  the  other  members  on  the 
subject.  With  grateful  thanks  for  your  cordial,  earnest 
support  and  counsel  in  this  emergency,  I  am  very  cor- 
dially yours,  JAMES  A.  BEAVER." 

The  suggestions  contained  in  the  letter  were  favorably 
received,  and  unanimously  adopted  as  the  best  means 
of  relieving  the  distress  of  the  State's  citizens.  After  a 
short  discussion  it  was  decided  that  the  commission 
should  start  on  its  tour  of  inspection  next  Monday  after- 
noon, the  members  to  visit  all  the  towns  affected  by  the 
flood,  learn  the  amount  of  distress  prevalent,  and  take 
immediate  steps  to  assist  the  needy  by  furnishing  food, 
clothing,  household  utensils,  and,  where  it  would  be 
advisable,  to  purchase  tools  for  workmen  and  mechanics, 
that  they  might  resume  employment  as  quickly  as  pos- 
sible, and  become  self-supporting. 

After  this  matter  was  settled,  the  Governor  announced 
that  he  had  abandoned  the  plan  of  using  a  million 
dollars  out  of  the  State  Treasury,  under  the  proposed 
indemnity  bond,  which  was  to  be  signed  by  200  gentle- 
men to  secure  the  Governor  against  loss  in  case  the 
Legislature  refused  to  appropriate  the  amount.  The 
Governor  stated  that  it  would  probably  establish  a  prece- 
dent that  might  work  harm  in  the  future  and  it  would  be 
better  to  secure  the  money  by  other  means.  He  said  he 
had  been  offered  and  had  accepted  the  million  dollars  by 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  153 

officers  of  Philadelphia  banks,  who  declare  they  will 
require  no  security  for  its  repayment  and  ask  no  interest 
for  its  use,  merely  accepting  the  Governor's  word  that 
he  will  use  his  efforts  to  have  the  Legislature  appropri- 
ate the  money  from  the  State  Treasury  to  repay  the 
loan. 

"  This  arrangement,"  said  the  Governor,  in  speaking 
of  this  plan  of  raising  the  million  dollars,  "  supersedes 
the  necessity  of  securing  the  names  of  200  gentlemen, 
as  the  bond  will  not  be  given  now,  and  the  guarantee 
will  not  be  required.  It  might  be  said  that  over  200 
gentlemen  had  consented  to  go  on  the  bond.  Among 
those  was  General  Simon  Cameron.  I  could  get  fully 
1000  names  on  that  bond.  It  has  been  useful  in  show- 
ing the  complete  backing  the  Executive  had  in  dealing 
with  'this  emergency. 

"  The  Commission  which  has  just  been  appointed  will 
deal  with  the  question  of  relief;  that  is,  the  distribution 
of  charity  that  may  be  needed  by  the  people  of  this 
State.  This  Commission  is  required  to  visit  as  soon 
as  possible  the  stricken  districts,  so  as  to  make  a 
personal  inspection  and  determine  what  can  be  done  to 
put  the  people  in  a  condition  to  support  themselves.  It 
is  well  known  to  every  one  who  has  had  anything  to  do 
with  the  donors  of  the  funds  that  it  is  their  wish  to 
make  these  people  self-supporting.  We  are  not  only  to 
give  them  food,  but  we  are  to  give  them  clothing,  shoes 
and  cooking  utensils. 

"  The  work  of  supplying  the  poor  people  with  necessi- 
ties is  going  on  rapidly.  Since  I  came  here  I  got  a  tele- 
gram asking  for  a  car  load  of  shoes.  I  handed  it  to 
Mayor  Fitler,  and  he  refered  it  to  Mr.  Ogden,  who  went 


154  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

out,  and  in  15  minutes  the  order  was  filled  and  preparing 
to  be  shipped.  There  is  not  a  person  in  Pennsylvania 
that  suffers.  They  are  getting  clothing,  shoes,  food,  ect., 
even  in  the  villages. 

"  The  question  is,  how  far  the  Commission  can  go  in 
expending  the  funds  beyond  providing  something  to  eat 
and  something  to  wear. 

"  It  is  an  error  to  suppose  that  the  State  intended  to 
relieve  destitution.  The  State  will  simply  clear  up  the 
highways  and  watercourses." 

The  Governor  said  he  did  not  know  all  the  names  of  the 
banks  offering  to  loan  the  million  dollars,  and  said  it 
would  be  unfair  to  mention  some  of  them.  The  banks 
are  very  few  that  have  made  the  offer — probably  three 
or  four — and  it  is  thought  that  the  Governor  expects  to 
hear  from  others  soon. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  people  of  the  whole  country  niouin  together  as 
one  family,  for  this  sorrow  has  brought  into  activity  the 
spirit  of  brotherhood,  which  is  apt  to  slumber  in  times 
of  prosperity.  This  was  an  occasion  which  called  for  and 
obtained  the  promptest  and  most  liberal  benevolence. 
It  was  a  duty,  to  offer  aid  promptly  and  liberally  to  the 
sufferers.  Food,  clothing,  shelter,  money  were  needed 
in  large  amounts  for  the  instanstaneous  relief  of  the 
afflicted  district.  And  not  only  was  this  given,  but  our 
merchants  and  business  men  also  granted  long  credit  to 
their  customers  who  had  lost  all  their  possessions  by  the 
flood,  and  soon  the  valley  of  the  Conemaugh  will  be 
again  a  prosperous  industrial  centre  of  the  State  of 
Pennsylvania. 

Not  only  this  valley  was  visited  by  this  terrible  disas- 
ter, but  also  other  parts  of  the  State  suffered  heavy  losses 
by  rain-storms  and  inundations  about  the  same  time  as 
Johnstown. 

CENTRE   COUNTY. 

The  flood  played  terrible  havoc  in  Centre  county,  in 
both  loss  of  life  and  damage  to  property.  Bellefonte 
itself  suffered  little,  being  built  on  hills.  Along  the  Bald 
Eagle  Valley  the  destruction  was  fearful,  but  happily 
there  was  no  loss  of  life.  The  furnace  at  Curtin  was 
so  badly  damaged  that  it  had  to  be  blown  out.  The 
entire  bottom  land,  with  all  the  spring  crops,  for  35 
miles  in  the  lower  end  of  the  valley,  were  destoyed.  All 

(155) 


156  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

county,  township  and  railroad  bridges  from  Milesburg 
to  Lock  Haven  are  washed  away,  and  nearly  all  small 
buildings  in  the  line  of  the  flood  succumbed  to  it. 

The  damage  in  the  Bald  Eagle  Valley  will  amount  to 
three-quarters  of  a  million  of  dollars.  In  Penn's  Valley 
there  was  loss  of  life  and  many  miraculous  escapes  were 
made.  The  breaking  of  the  mill  dams  all  along  the 
courses  of  the  streams  made  it  worse.  All  along 
this  valley  all  the  saw  and  grist  mills  were  carried  away 
and  destroyed.  The  valley  being  narrow  made  the 
water  deep  and  gave  it  force.  The  flood,  occurring  at 
midnight,  caught  most  of  the  people  unprepared.  At 
Millheim  and  Coburn  several  houses  were  carried  away 
with  the  people  in  them,  but  all  escaped  with  their  lives, 
except  Mrs.  Simon  Phoust  and  three  children.  Their 
house  was  overturned,  and  the  whole  family  was 
drowned.  Her  husband  worked  in  Cameron  county, 
and,  hearing  that  there  was  trouble,  started  to  come 
home,  but  he  also  was  drowned  in  crossing  the  river  at 
Sinnemahoning.  The  damage  in  this  part  of  the  county 
will  also  amount  to  nearly  three-quarters  of  a  million, 
made  up  of  individual  losses,  ranging  from  $300  to  $20,- 
ooo.  Some  poor  people  lost  not  only  their  house  and 
contents,  but  also  their  lot,  nothing  being  left  but  a  creek 
bottom  of  rocks  and  debris. 

The  great  loss  of  life  occurred  on  Fishing  creek.  It 
rises  in  Nittany  Valley,  ten  miles  above  Bellefonte,  and 
flows  into  the  Bald  Eagle  near  Mill  Hall.  The  valley 
is  narrow.  There  was  a  large  dam  at  Washington  Fur- 
nace, at  the  head  of  the  valley,  and  it  broke  in  the  night 
and  filled  the  valley  from  mountain  to  mountain,  sweep- 


THE  JOHNSTO WN  FLOOD.  1 5 / 

ing  everything  before  it,  leaving  nothing  but  ruin  and 
disaster  in  its  wake. 

All  those  drowned  were  lost  by  their  houses  being 
swept  away  and  torn  apart.  The  flood  left  only  a  few 
houses  in  what  were  prosperous  villages  of  from  twenty 
to  thirty  houses  each.  Many  families  were  saved  by 
getting  on  the  roofs  of  their  houses  and  floating  to  the 
end  of  the  valley. 


MUNCY. 

Muncy  people  were  surprised  on  Monday,  June  3, 
when  the  Philadelphia  papers  of  May  31  and  June  I  came 
in,  to  find  that  the  story  of  their  suffering  had  not  been 
told. 

The  town  is  situated  at  the  confluence  of  the  West 
Branch  river  and  Muncy  creek,  and  in  the  loveliest  valley 
in  the  Keystone  State.  Wherever  the  eye  could  reach 
beautiful  country  seats  and  well-tilled  farms  could  be 
seen.  Winding  streams  found  their  way  to  larger  ones, 
well-kept  roads  carried  and  led  the  prosperous  people  to 
and  fro,  contentment  was  written  on  every  hearthstone 
and  joy  at  the  prospect  of  great  crops  filled  every 
farmer's  heart.  The  grim  hand  of  fate  brought  want 
and  misery  elsewhere,  but  to  beautiful  Muncy  Valley 
starvation  was  a  stranger.  The  reverse  is  with  us  now. 
Farms  are  laid  waste,  factories  are  gutted,  homes  ruined, 
people  are  in  want,  children  are  becoming  sick  for  the 
necessaries  of  life,  disease  lurks  in  our  midst,  pestilence, 
with  a  gaunt  hand,  threatens  to  follpvv  in  the  wake  of 
rushing  water,  provisions  are  scarce,  and  those  who 


1 5  8  THE  JOHXSTO IVN  FL  OOD. 

dreamed  of  happy  futures  have  no  place  to  rest  their 
heads. 

The  overflow  of  river  and  creek  covered  a  territory  at 
least  two  miles  wide  and  three  long,  tearing  out  the 
large  ice  supply  at  Edwards'  Point,  pushing  the  large  oil 
tank  of  the  Tidewater  Company  from  its  foundation, 
sweeping  the  farm  of  P>nest  Noble  and  destroying  crops 
worth  about  $5000,  flooding  the  farms  of  James  Sprout, 
washing  out  all  the  bridges  on  Glade  run,  filling  every 
cellar  in  East  Muncy,  were  the  first  efforts  of  the  flood. 
"That  was  about  as  far  as  '65  flood  came,"  and  "this 
can't  go  any  further,"  was  heard  on  every  side.  But 
when  the  water  rolled  on  the  floors  of  Mr.  De  La 
Green's  home,  ruining  all  on  the  floor, and  moving  right 
up  Market  street  at  the  rate  of  three  feet  per  hour  gen- 
eral havoc  took  place,  and  every  one  who  could  com- 
menced to  save  property.  It  was  almost  folly.  The 
water  was  coming  the  width  of  a  weather-board  on  every 
house  at  TO  o'clock  Saturday  morning  and  it  never 
halted  until  Sunday  came.  Then  slowly  but  surely  the 
tide  turned.  The  record  of  1865  had  been  beaten  by 
over  seven  feet.  Fortunately  not  a  soul  was  lost,  but 
homes  have  gone,  and  furniture  is  all  ruined. 

LEWISTOWN. 

The  town  of  Lewistown  has  been  cut  ofF  from  the  rest 
of  the  world  since  the  3ist  of  May.  The  situation  was 
this:  The  waters  rose  nine  feet  higher  than  in  1847. 
Eight  river  bridges,  railroad  and  county,  were  all  swept 
away.  There  is  but  one  open  railroad  here.  South- 
ward the  line  is  a  wreck. 

The  highways  of  the  town  are  covered  with  debris  ten 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  159 

feet  high,  and  many  of  its  population  are  sheltered  and 
fed  in  the  Court  House  and  otherwise.  It  is  impossible 
to  estimate  the  loss  by  damage  to  property.  No  lives 
were  lost. 

NEWPORT,  PERRY    COUNTY. 

Two-thirds  of  the  town  was  overflowed.  Seven  fami- 
lies were  destitute,  their  homes  having  been  swept 
away.  The  water  was  seven  feet  deep  in  the  streets  in 
the  central  part  of  the  town.  The  loss  is  estimated  at  a 
half  million  dollars. 

LOCK    HAVEN. 

Superintendent  Pettit,  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad, 
made  his  way  to  the  edge  of  the  city  of  Lock  Haven  on 
the  4th  day  of  June.  He  saw  some  of  the  principal 
citizens,  and  they  said  there  was  no  suffering.  All  the 
houses  had  from  six  to  ten  feet  of  water  in  them.  Only 
one  person  was  known  to  have  been  drowned  at  Lock 
Haven,  but  several  lives  were  reported  lost  at  Mill  Hall, 
a  town  about  four  miles  from  Lock  Haven. 

The  gravest  apprehensions  had  been  felt  in  regard  to 
Lock  Haven,  and  the  very  favorable  outlook  was  the 
cause  of  general  rejoicing. 

The  through  mails  delayed  at  Altoona  were  started 
over  the  mountains  to  Pittsburg  on  June  4th.  One  hun- 
dred and  thirty-two  passengers  accompanied  them. 
They  came  to  Ebensburg  via  Cresson  by  rail,  and  from 
Ebensburg  to  Blairville.  They  will  travel  over  the 
mountain  roads  in  wagons,  and  at  the  latter  place  will 
take  the  train  for  Pittsburg.  Later  on  some  eases  of 
destruction  became  known  and  relief  was  sent  promptly. 
Wagon  loads  of  provisions  and  clothing  were  sent  to 


160  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

White  Hall,  Salona,  Woolrich,  Queensrun  and  Mackey- 
ville. 

The  water  in  the  houses  on  Main  street,  and  in  that 
section  of  Lock  Haven  where  most  of  there  sidences 
were,  was  three  feet  deep,  while  the  principal  portion  of 
the  town  was  submerged  to  a  depth  of  from  five  to  six 
feet.  All  communications  were  by  boats  and  rafts.  The 
water  in  the  East-end  District  was  eight  feet  deep. 

HARR1SBURG. 

The  flood  in  the  Susquehanna  touched  high  water  mark 
on  the  first  of  June  at  6.30  A.  M.  when  it  registered 
twenty-six  feet  seven  inches  above  low  water  mark, 
or  two  feet  two  inches  above  the  great  flood  of 
1865.  From  that  hour  until  10  o'clock  the  water  was  at 
a  standstill,  when  it  slowly  began  to  recede.  At  6  o'clock 
p.  M.,  it  had  fallen  two  feet.  This  gave  great  hope  for 
the  night,  but  the  water  was  still  very  high  and  capable  of 
doing  much  damage.  However,  there  was  no  fear  from 
the  northern  waters,  as  the  last  of  it  reached  there  Mon- 
day afternoon  and  the  incessant  stream  of  saw  logs  which 
had  been  running  since  7  o'clock  Saturday  evening 
cleared. 

The  great  fear  among  the  people  residing  along  Pax- 
ton  Creek  was  realized  about  10  o'clock  at  night.  The 
waters  of  the  creek  had  receded  and  some  of  the  five 
hundred  flooded-out  families  had  returned  to  their  homes 
and  begun  to  fix  up,  not  without  misgivings  as  to  the 
backwater  of  the  Susquehanna  again  flooding  them. 

This  water  came  about  10  o'clock  with  a  steady  rush 
and  for  a  second  time  the  Sibletown  people  had  to  fly 
for  their  lives  and  abandon  everything.  Families  again 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  l6l 

went  through  their  Friday  night's  experience  of  being 
taken  off  in  boats,  and  people  who  had  remained  home 
on  Friday  night  were  forced  to  get  out  by  the  second 
flood. 

The  Mayor's  office,  market  houses  and  other  places 
were  soon  crowded  with  unfortunate  flood  sufferers,  and 
several  hundred  who  were  utterly  destitute  were  at  once 
given  shelter  and  provision  made  for  the  others. 

All  day  Monday  committees  of  citizens  were  sending 
in  supplies  and  money  for  the  sufferers. 

The  Cumberland  Valley  Railroad  bridge,  a  new  iron 
structure,  was  battered  all  night  badly  by  large  logs, 
pieces  of  bridge  and  rafts,  but  was  still  standing  Monday 
night  with  the  water  sweeping  through  it,  and  a  jam  of 
logs  extended  all  along  its  upper  side  from  the  shore 
to  the  island,  a  distance  of  half  a  mile.  The  foot  bridge 
piers  were  piled  high  with  logs  and  debris,  and  a  thou- 
sand huge  logs  were  jammed  into  the  approach  to  the 
Dock  Street  bridge. 

The  Pennsylvania  tracks,  from  Harrisburg  to  a  point 
below  Steelton,  were  covered  with  logs  and  sawed 
timber  jammed  between  the  rails,  and  it  took  much  hard 
work  to  remove  them. 

The  highest  point  on  Front  street  reached  by  the  flood 
was  by  the  back  water,  which  almost  reached  the  pave- 
ment in  front  of  General  Cameron's  residence 

The  grave  of  John  Harris,  the  founder  of  Harrisburg, 
which  is  directly  in  front  of  the  Cameron  residence  on 
the  river  bank,  was  covered  by  five  feet  of  water  and  two 
huge  saw  logs  caught  in  the  railing  about  the  grave, 
stuck  up  like  tomb-stones. 
II 


1 62  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

The  residence  of  Mayor  Fritchey  was  under  water  to  the 
second  story,  and  he  had  to  be  rowed  home  in  a  boat. 

RENOVO. 

The  town  of  Renovo  suffered  the  loss  of  $250,000  by 
the  flood,  and  the  whole  country  round  was  flooded  com- 
pletely. All  of  the  telegraph  lines  were  down  and  com- 
munication has  been  completely  cut  off  until  now.  The 
water  reached  thirty  feet  above  low-water  mark,  and  on 
Saturday  morning  three  quarters  of  the  town  was  under 
water  and  several  thousand  people  were  driven  from  their 
homes.  Many  houses  with  all  their  contents  were  swept 
away,  and  the  flooded  district  is  almost  completely  gut- 
ted. 

P.  H.  Sullivan's  Opera  House,  valued  at  $20,000,  was 
swept  away  after  midnight  on  Friday,  as  was  the  South 
Renovo  bridge,  valued  at  $25,000,  while  the  main  avenue 
of  South  Renovo  was  swept  away  to  within  a  few  feet  of 
the  houses  located  there. 

At  Emporium  and  other  points  the  lumber  industries 
suffered  losses  which  will  run  up  to  almost  a  million 
dollars,  while  all  of  the  surrounding  towns  and  hamlets 
were  away  under  water.  One  life  lost  is  reported  at 
Lock  Haven,  but  none  here.  Many  of  the  people  are 
much  in  need  of  aid. 

COLUMBIA,  PA. 

At  Columbia  where  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  strikes 
the  Susquehanna,  lumber  yards,  planing  mills,  rolling 
mills  and  boat-houses  were  surrounded.  The  Pennsyl- 
vania Canal,  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  and  the  river 
were  merged  in  one. 

Viewed  from   Chickies    rock,     several    hundred  feet 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  163 

above  the  water  level,  for  many  miles  above  Columbia 
nothing  can  be  seen  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  tracks 
or  canal  and  all  passenger  trains  for  the  West  are  backed 
off  here  and  those  for  the  East  are  made  up  at  Columbia. 

On  the  tide  water  canal  the  boats  have  been  lifted  like 
so  many  toys  on  to  the  banks.  The  Williamsport  and 
Lock  Haven  booms  arrived  at  Columbia,  and  the  river 
from  shore  to  shore  and  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach, 
was  covered  with  floating  timber,  wrecked  bridges, 
dwellings,  and  animals.  . 

The  blast  furnaces  along  the  river  at  Marietta  and 
Chickies  banked  their  fires.  At  these  points  the  damage 
to  property  was  greatest.  The  water  in  these  two  towns 
reached  Front  street  and  overflowed  the  ground  floors 
of  dwellings  and  business  houses.  Much  apprehension 
was  felt  and  the  people  living  along  the  lower  streets 
were  making  hurried  preparations  to  leave  their  homes 
should  the  river  continue  rising.  The  Columbia  and 
Port  Deposit  Railroad  from  Peach  Bottom  to  Frazer  Sta- 
tion was  covered  with  water. 

IN    MCKEAN    COUNTY. 

The  New  York,  Lake  Erie  and  Western's  new  iron 
bridge  across  the  Genesee  at  Belmont,  New  York,  was 
swept  away  by  the  flood,  and  two  men  who  were  on  the 
bridge  were  carried  away  and  drowned.  The  Allegheny 
was  making  havoc  with  the  monster  iron  tanks  of  the 
National  Transit  Company  on  the  flats  at  Olean,  where 
are  located  a  regular  army  of  tanks,  each  having  a  capac- 
ity 35,000  barrels.  The  water  on  the  flats  was  all  the 
way  from  five  to  fifteen  feet  deep,  and  seven  of  the 
jumbo  tanks  were  floating  helplessly  about  in  the  flood. 


1 64  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

Four  of  the  tanks  have  drifted  several  rods  from  their 
grades. 

The  tanks  are  provided  with  patent  safety  valves,  and 
the  oil  could  not  escape  into  the  torrent  unless  the  tanks 
are  broken. 

SUNBURY. 

The  water  rose  at  the  rate  of  two  inches  an  hour  all 
night,  and  hundreds  of  citizens  were  up  all  night. 

About  2  A.  M.,  with  a  grind  and  a  crash,  a  large  por- 
tion of  a  wooden  bridge  struck  the  Philadelphia  and 
Reading  iron  structure,  and  down  went  a  third  span  of  it 
in  the  hissing  and  foaming  torrent.  Parts  of  barns, 
whole  piles  of  boards  and  debris  of  all  descriptions 
ground  and  crashed  against  the  bridge  the  whole  night 
long  weakening  several  other  spans  and  moving  them 
out  of  position. 

At  Spruce  street,  at  the  lower  end  of  the  city,  a  din  oi 
blowing  trumpets  about  2.30  A.  M.  caused  the  crowd  to 
rush  there,  and  it  was  found  that  the  river  was  up  to  the 
top  of  the  bank.  The  residents  were  shoveling  dirt  and 
wheeling  it  to  stay  the  angry  waters,  but  to  no  effect. 
The  river  broke  through  the  bank  and  soon  the  whole 
lower  end  of  the  city  was  under  water  clear  up  to  the 
Philadelphia  and  Reading  embankment.  Above  that 
point  it  also  burst  a  sewer  and  the  yards  soon  filled 
around  there  and  along  the  river  front  to  Market  street. 

BEDFORD. 

Not  since  the  flood  of  1847,  so  says  the  oldest  citizens 
of  the  town,  has  Bedford  been  so  inundated  as  it  is.  The 
rain  had  on  that  memorable  Friday  night  been  con- 
stantly falling  for  the  past  twenty-four  hours.  In  the 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  1 65 

morning  families  living  in  the  western  part  of  the  town, 
known  as  Texas,  were  compelled  to  move  out  of  the 
houses.  At  noon  cattle,  hogs  and  sheep  were  carried 
down  the  river. 

Traffic  and  mails  were  all  at  a  stand.  The  beautiful 
lawn  at  the  Springs  Hotel,  which  was  just  put  in  readi- 
ness for  the  opening  was  entirely  submerged.  Four  new 
iron  bridges  recently  erected  by  the  county  have  been 
swept  away.  At  Cessna  Station,  eight  miles  north,  200 
sheep  were  lost.  At  Everett,  eight  miles  east,  traffic 
was  carried  on  all  day  by  the  use  of  flats.  Ex-Sheriff 
Lashley,  proprietor  of  the  Lopalace  Hotel,  was  com- 
pelled to  close  his  hotel,  the  water  being  two  feet  deep  in 
his  barroom. 

The  railroad  bridges  between  Bedford  and  Cumber- 
land had  been  damaged  to  such  an  extent  that  no  trains 
had  reached  Bedford  from  the  south  that  day.  Super- 
intendent Meyers  left  on  an  engine  Saturday  and  was 
held  up  somewhere  between  here  and  Hyndman,  not 
being  able  to  get  either  way.  A  party  of  commercial 
men  tried  to  reach  Everett  by  coach,  but  were  compelled 
to  return  over  the  tops  of  fences.  Gardens  in  the  west- 
ern part  of  the  town  have  all  been  ruined.  Several  fine 
trout  ponds  near  the  town  have  gone  with  the  wreck. 

The  damages  to  bridges  alone  in  the  county  will 
reach  $50,000. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

WILLIAMSPORT. 

SINCE  June  1st  the  city  of  Williamsport  was  flooded 
with  34  feet  of  water,  having  the  Susquehanna  boom 
taken  out  with  200,000,000  feet  of  logs,  over  40,000,000 
feet  of  sawed  lumber  taken,  mills  carried  away  and  others 
wrecked,  business  and  industrial  establishments  wrecked 
and  a  large  number  of  lives  lost.  A  flood  nearly  seven 
feet  higher  than  the  great  high  water  of  1865. 

Early  on  Friday  news  was  received  there  of  the  flood 
at  Clearfield,  but  it  was  not  before  2  o'clock  Saturday 
morning  that  the  swelling  water  began  to  become  prom- 
inent, the  river  then  showing  a  rise  averaging  two  feet  to 
the  hour.  Steadily  and  rapidly  thereafter  the  rise  con- 
tinued. The  rain  up  the  country  had  been  terrific,  and 
from  Thursday  afternoon  throughout  the  night  and  dur- 
ing Friday  and  Friday  night,  the  rain  fell  here  with  but 
little  interruption.  After  midnight,  Friday,  it  came 
down  in  absolute  torrents  until  nearly  daylight  Saturday 
morning.  As  a  result  of  this  rise  Griffin's  run,  a  small 
stream  running  through  the  city  from  northwest  to 
so-utheast,  was  raised  until  it  flooded  the  whole  territory 
on  either  side  of  it  worse  than  ever  before  occurred. 

Soon  after  daylight,  the  rain  having  ceased,  it  began 
to  subside,  and  as  the  river  had  not  then  reached  an 
alarming  height,  very  few  persons  were  concerned  over 
the  outlook.  The  water  kept  getting  higher  and  higher, 
and  spreading  out  over  the  lower  streets. 

At  about  9  o'clock  in  the  forenoon  the  logs  began  to 
(166) 


THE  JOHNSTOWN \FLOOD.  167 

go  down,  filling  the  stream  from  bank  to  bank.  The 
water  had  by  this  time  reached  almost  the  stage  .of  1865. 
It  was  coming  up  Third  street,  near  the  Court  House, 
and  was  up  Fourth  street  to  Market.  Not  long  after  it 
reached  Third  street  and  William  and  advanced  up 
Fourth  street  to  Pine.  Its  onward  progress  did  not  stop, 
however,  as  it  rose  higher  on  Third  and  soon  began  to 
reach  Fourth  street,  both  at  Elmira  and  Locust  streets. 
No  one  along  Fourth,  between  William  and  Hepburn, 
had  any  conception  that  it  would  trouble  them,  but  the 
sequel  proved  their  mistake. 

Soon  after  noon  the  water  began  crossing  the  railroad 
at  Walnut  and  Campbell  streets,  and  rapidly  the  country 
all  north  of  the  railroad  was  soon  submerged,  that  part 
along  the  run  being  flooded  for  the  second  time  during 
the  day.  The  rise  kept  on  until  9  o'clock  at  night,  and 
after  that  hour  it  began  to  go  slowly  the  other  way. 

By  daylight  Sunday  morning  it  had  fallen  two  feet, 
and  the  receding  continued  during  the  day.  When  the 
water  was  at  its  highest  the  memorable  sight  was  to  be 
seen  of  a  level  surface  of  water,  extending  from  the 
northern  line  of  the  city,  from  Rural  avenue,  on  Locust 
street,  entirely  across  the  city  to  the  mountain  on  the 
south  side.  This  meant  that  the  water  was  six  feet  deep 
on  the  floors  of  buildings  in  Market  Square,  and  over 
four  feet  deep  in  the  station  of  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road at  the  Park  Hotel.  Fully  three  quarters  of  the  city 
was  submerged.  The  First  Presbyterian,  Christ  Church 
and  Trinity  each  had  their  organ  badly  damaged  by  the 
water.  In  St.  Paul's  Lutheran  Church  the  electric  motor 
that  pumps  the  organ  was  flooded,  and  a  large  number 
of  new  books  of  worship,  which  had  but  recently  been 


168  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

received,  were  damaged  by  the  flood.  Among  the 
other  churches  that  suffered  were  the  Mulberry  Street 
Methodist,  Market  Street  Lutheran  and  Immanuel's 
Reformed  Church  of  the  Disciples.  The  City  Mission 
foundation  walls  were  injured,  and  the  edifice  is  now  badly 
out  of  plumb. 

The  loss  was  necessarily  enormous.  The  business 
houses  throughout  the  city  all  lose  heavily,  many  of 
them  over  $20,000  each.  The  loss  falls  heaviest  on  the 
lumber  men.  All  the  logs  are  lost  and  a  large  share  of 
the  cut  lumber.  The  loss  of  life  has  also  been  heavy. 
Two  children  of  Charles  Edwards  were  drowned,  and 
three  children  of  a  family  named  Shultz  and  a  child  of 
William  Deitrich,  a  man  named  Mitchler  and  an 
unknown  man  also  perished,  all  in  the  city.  At  Nippe- 
nose,  12  miles  up  the  river,  12  persons  were  drowned, 
members  of  the  families  of  George  and  William  Young- 
man  and  two  young  lady  visitors. 

The  loss  of  property  has  been  very  heavy  in  all  places 
around  Williamsport.  Morris,  Tioga  county,  is  a  total 
wreck.  The  mills  and  part  of  the  logs  of  Mr.  Landis, 
the  Dover  Mill  and  the  Blackwells  Mill  are  gone.  Many 
dwellings  and  other  buildings  are  swept  away  The 
Pince  Creek  Railroad  has  suffered  greatly.  The  track 
is  torn  away  and  a  large  amount  of  the  embankment  was 
washed  out  just  west  of  this  city,  and  all  along  up  to 
Blackwells  and  beyond.  At  Salladesburg  much  damage 
was  done.  Houses  and  mills  were  flooded,  and  in  some 
instances  moved  and  greatly  injured.  The  plank  road 
was  torn  up,  bridges  carried  away,  and  great  destruction 
caused  at  every  point. 

The  tannery  at  Salladesburg  was  greatly  damaged  and 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  169 

considerable  bark  lost.  The  grist  mill  just  above  the 
site  of  the  Larrys  Creek  Woolen  Mills  suffered  serious 
damage  and  the  dam  was  taken  out.  The  farmers  along 
the  creek  suffered  very  much  in  the  loss  of  fences  and 
outbuildings,  and  in  some  instances  the  soil  was  washed 
from  a  portion  of  the  fields  and  the  growing  crops 
ruined.  The  Larrys  Creek  region  has  suffered  from 
floods  before,  but  never  to  the  extent  it  has  on  this  occa- 
sion. In  one  instance  several  persons  only  saved  their 
lives  by  clinging  to  the  branches  of  trees  until  rescued. 
The  iron  road  bridge  near  the  mouth  of  the  creek  is 
turned  around  and  rendered  impassible,  but  the  old  canal 
aqueduct  is  still  there.  There  was  much  other  damage 
done  along  the  stream.  All  along  the  line  of  the  Phila- 
delphia and  Reading  track  through  the  city  destruction 
met  the  eye.  Many  cars  were  lifted  from  the  track  and 
torn  in  pieces.  The  number  of  houses  taken  away  or 
toppled  into  heaps  of  rubbish  cannot  yet  be  stated,  but 
is  quite  large.  Along  the  entire  river  front,  going  west 
from  Pine  street,  debris  is  piled,  and  in  some  places  ex- 
tends up  to  Third  street,  even  further  into  the  heart  of 
the  city.  On  Pine  street,  near  Third,  a  large  outhouse 
lies  on  the  street  and  sidewalk,  while  on  Third  street, 
above  Hepburn,  lumber  and  other  drift  are  piled  half  as 
high  as  the  houses.  The  force  of  the  water  can  be  im- 
agined when  it  is  stated  that  a  car,  loaded  with  coal,  was 
carried  a  distance  of  five  miles  and  left  sticking  on  top 
of  a  piece  of  the  boom.  A  number  of  boom  cribs  were 
cut  off  as  smoothly  as  if  by  a  knife.  Many  families 
showed  wonderful  courage  in  remaining  in  their  houses 
after  the  water  entered  the  second  stories.  In  some  cases 
their  only  chance  to  get  out  of  the  buildings  would  have 


I/O  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

been  through  the  trap  doors  in  the  roofs.  It  was  often 
more  dangerous  to  try  to  get  out  than  to  remain,  and 
many  boats,  loaded  with  those  seeking  to  escape,  were 
overturned  in  the  angry  waters. 

The  clothing  which  had  been  called  for  was  badly 
needed,  as  so  many  have  lost  all  but  what  they  had  on, 
that  being  wet,  and  no  chance  being  afforded  to  dry  it. 

A  child  was  born  in  a  saw  mill  occupied  by  a  number 
of  homeless  people,  the  mother  being  wholly  without 
necessary  accommodations,  and  the  committee  found  a 
sick  woman  in  a  distressing  condition  on  the  second 
story  of  a  building  that  had  been  flooded,  who  was  there 
without  fire  or  other  comforts. 

Word  has  been  received  from  the  Crescent  Nail  Works, 
on  the  Northern  Central  Railroad,  that  the  place  has 
been  nearly  all  washed  away.  Many  of  the  houses  and 
a  part  of  the  nail  works  are  gone.  The  water  was  up  to 
the  roofs  of  most  of  the  houses.  The  population  took 
refuge  in  a  church  on  the  side  hill  and  in  such  buildings 
as  were  not  too  much  in  water.  The  people  were  left 
entirely  destitute. 

A  TELEGRAPHIC   CORRESPONDENCE. 

The  following  telegraphic  correspondence  passed 
between  Governor  Beaver  and  Mayor  Foresman,  of 
Williamsport: 

WILLIAMSPORT,  Pa.,  June  4th,  1889. — To  Governor 
Beaver :  The  situation  expressed  in  a  few  words  is  this. 
The  boom  has  been  cleaned  of  logs.  From  the  princi- 
pal yards  along  the  river  front  the  manufactured  timber 
has  been  swept  away.  The  houses  of  the  poor  people 
nearest  the  river  have  been  carried  away,  with  all  they 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  171 

possessed.  Thousands  of  people  are  homeless  and  with- 
out anything  but  the  clothes  upon  their  backs.  Provis- 
ions are  scarce  and  most  needed  quick.  Many  of  our 
people  are  in  absolute  want  for  the  necessities  of  life. 
Although  bereft  of  property  themselves,  our  business 
men  have  responded  nobly  for  present  necessities.  At  a 
meeting  called  yesterday  $7000  in  cash  was  raised.  We 
badly  need  disinfectants.  Dead  animals  and  all  kinds  of 
filth  are  strewed  upon  the  streets,  and  grave  fears  of  an 
epidemic  are  entertained.  Stocks  of  goods  of  stores  in 
the  centre  of  the  city  are  ruined.  It  is  impossible  to 
estimate  the  loss  and  damage  to  different  kinds  of  prop- 
erty. Five  million  "dollars  is  a  low  estimate  of  the  loss 
on  lumber  alone;  other  losses  larger.  The  surrounding 
country  has  suffered  just  as  badly.  Booms,  bridges 
and  villages  have  been  swept  away,  and  the  loss 
of  life  has  been  considerable.  Judge  Cummins  is  treas- 
urer of  the  Relief  Fund,  and  will  see  personally  to  the 
faithful  distribution  of  all  contributions.  Responsible 
relief  committees  are  now  organized  in  each  ward  of  the 
city,  and  aid  is  administered  as  fast  as  we  get  it.  Please 
God,  we  are  not  dismayed,  and  rely  on  His  guidance, 
the  generosity  of  our  own  State  and  country  to  aid  us 
in  this  the  hour  of  our  dire  necessity. 

One  thousand  military  tents  will  afford  the  greatest 
possible  relief  to  our  people,  who  are  now  without 
shelter,  and  the  lumber  all  having  gone  other  temporary 
shelter  cannot  be  provided  soon  enough.  The  tents 
that  you  might  send  will  be  taken  charge  of  by  the 
Mayor,  and  taken  care  of  and  returned  in  as  good  condi- 
tion as  possible.  Send  us  several  large  mess  tents  where 
we  can  feed  the  people  in  large  numbers.  -The  low 


1 72  THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD. 

ground  where  many  of  these  people  reside  is  an  unfit 
place  for  them  to  return  to  for  sanitary  reasons. 

MAYOR  FORESMAN. 

HARRISBURG,  June  4th,  1889.— Mayor  of  Williams- 
port,  Pa.  :  Be  of  good  cheer.  Your  reliance  is  not  mis- 
placed. God  and  the  country  will  sustain  you.  Will 
reach  with  help  as  soon  as  Montgomery  bridge  can  be 
crossed.  I  am  loading  cars  here  with  flour  and  grocer- 
ies, notwithstanding  the  pressure  of  our  own  stricken 
people.  Will  telegraph  Philadelphia  at  once  for  pro- 
visions and  disinfectants.  Put  your  unemployed  men  to 
work  removing  debris  and  cleansing  your  city.  I  will 
furnish  means  for  paying  them  reasonable  wages,  and 
this  will  answer  the  double  purpose  of  preventing  disease 
and  the  lawlessness  which  springs  from  idleness.  May 
not  be  able  to  send  you  tents.  The  State  has  no  large 
tents  such  as  you  desire.  Better  use  your  market  house  and 
other  public  buildings.  May  be  able,  when  communica- 
tion is  established,  to  send  you  a  carload  of  ordinary 
canvass.  The  country  is  responding  nobly  to  human- 
ity's call,  and  the  address  sent  out  last  night  will  give  a 
better  idea  of  the  situation,  so  that  I  have  no  fear  of  any 
lack  of  means  for  furnishing  all  needed  help.  Commu- 
nicate with  me  directly  and  freely  as  to  your  needs  and 
how  I  can  co-operate  in  supplying  them. 

JAMES  A.  BEAVER,  Governor. 

WILLIAMSPORT,  Pa.,  June  4,  1889. — Governor  Beaver: 
With  the  tents  asked  for,  furnish  a  supply  of  blankets 
and  camp  equipage. 

J.  S.  FORESMAN,  MAYOR. 

The  estimated  loss  of  the  merchants   in  the  city  is 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  173 

$885,000,  and  that  of  the  lumbermen  is  estimated  at 
$5,000,000.  The  lumbermen's  Exchange  appointed  Log 
and  Lumber  Committees  for  the  protection  of  the  lum- 
ber that  has  been  caught  on  the  banks.  Fifty  million 
feet  of  lumber  have  been  caught  above  the  boom  and 
will  be  sawed  here  this  Summer.  The  Taylor  Mill, 
which  floated  off  bodily,  lodged  about  two  miles  below 
the  city  and  will  be  returned.  One  firm  has  traced  29,- 
000,000  feet  of  sawed  lumber.  If  the  present  period  can 
be  tided  over  the  city  will  recover.  Contributions  have 
been  received  from  the  cities  from  New  York  to  Omaha, 
Neb.,  and  the  citizens  were  greatly  cheered  over  the 
interest  that  is  taken  by  the  outside  world. 

It  is  estimated  that  three-fourths  of  the  200,000,000 
feet  of  timber  which  floated  away  from  Williamsport, 
Pa.,  is  floating  about  the  Chesapeake  or  lying  on  its 
shores.  The  "  Stray  Log  Committee,"  from  the  Lumber 
Exchange  of  that  city,  are  now  here  surveying  the  situ- 
ation. 

It  is  probable  that  they  will  erect  several  saw  mills  on 
the  shores  of  the  bay  to  work  up  the  stray  logs,  most 
of  which  have  drifted  upon  the  eastern  shore. 

Mr.  Frank  Gowan,  who  lives  at  Legoes  Point,  at  the 
mouth  of  Bush  river,  says  that  several  bodies  have  pass- 
ed down  the  bay  during  the  last  few  days.  On  Sunday 
he  found  the  body  of  a  man  wedged  between  some  tim- 
ber and  endeavered  to  extricate  it,  but  could  not.  The 
body  was  that  of^a  white  man,  of  medium  size,  wearing 
a  black  goatee.  He  was  about  30  years  of  age.  Float- 
ing near  the  body  were  two  houses,  one  a  one-story,  and 
the  second  a  neat  two-story  cottage,  freshly  painted. 
The  second  story  was  above  water,  and  Mr  Gowan 


1 74  THE  JO  HNS  TO  WN  FLOOD. 

climbed  into  it  and  found  it  nicely  furnished,  the  furni- 
ture, wearing  apparel,  &c.,  being  in  just  such  positions 
as  they  were  when  the  flood  started  the  cottage  on  its 
voyage. 

One  of  the  heaviest  losers  by  the  Williamsport  flood 
is  Mr.  Henry  James,  the  lumber  dealer,  of  Baltimore. 
It  is  estimated  that  15.000,000  feet  of  his  timber  floated 
away,  a  part  of  which  will  be  recovered,  with  other  tim- 
ber, in  the  bay,  and  will  probably  greatly  reduce  his 
loss,  which  is  now  approximated  at  $250,000. 

The  work  of  replacing  the  lost  spans  of  the  Sunbury 
bridge  has  been  completed  and  through  rail  communica- 
tion between  Philadelphia  and  Williamsport  has  been 
restored,  and  on  the  /th.,  day  of  June  President  Corbin 
issued  the  following  notice  : 

"  The  Philadelphia  and  Reading  Railroad  will  receive 
and  forward  free  of  charge  any  consignments  of  provi- 
sions or  clothing  for  the  sufferers  by  the  flood  at  Wil- 
liamsport. Such  consignments  to  be  marked  to  order  of 
the  Station  Agent  of  the  Philadelphia  and  Reading  Rail- 
road Company  at  Williamsport  and  will  be  subject  to 
the  disposition  of  the  relief  committee  of  that  city." 

THE  BELL'S  GAP  ROAD. 

A  report  from  Bellwood,  Pa.,  gives  this  information  in 
regard  to  the  condition  of  the  Bell's  Gap  Railroad  and 
Clearfield  and  Jefferson  Railroad  : 

"  The  culverts,  roadbed  and  small  bridges  washed  out 
have  been  repaired,  and  the  main  line  of  railroad  from 
Bellwood  to  Punxsutawney  is  in  operation  again.  Loaded 
coal  and  coke  cars  are  awaiting  shipment  over  the  main 
line  of  Pennsylvania  Railroad.  Telegraphic  communi- 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  175 

cation  is  again  established  over  the  line.  Individual 
losses  have  been  greatest  at  Irvona,  Coalport  and  Blair 
City." 

HUNTINGDON   COUNTY. 

From  Bedford  to  Huntingdon,  on  the  Rosstown 
branch,  and  in  Lewistown,  on  the  Juniata  river,  the  devas- 
tation was  the  greatest  in  Central  Pennsylvania,  except, 
of  course,  in  Johnstown. 

Not  a  house  was  left  that  stood  within  reach  of  the 
swollen  streams  there.  The  damage  to  property  will 
reach  $500,000,  while  the  other  towns  in  the  county 
have  suffered  correspondingly.  At  Mapleton,  the  im- 
mense tannery  of  L.  A.  Roberts  was  damaged  to  the 
extent  of  $200,000,  and  the  loss  to  other  property  will 
reach  $100,000  more.  The  Powell  furnace,  at  Saxton, 
sustained  a  loss  of  $300,000,  and  at  that  place  both  the 
railroad  bridges  were  swept  away,  leaving  railroad  com- 
munication with  Bedford  cut  off.  The  Huntingdon  and 
Broad  Top  Railroad  sustained  but  slight  damage.  For 
a  distance  of  three  miles  below  Huntingdon  four  miles 
of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  tracks  were  destroyed, 
with  bridges  gone  at  Manayunk  and  Lewistown,  the  lat- 
ter having  gone  down  during  a  heavy  storm  last  night. 

From  Huntingdon  to  the  junction  of  the  Juniata  and 
Susquehanna  rivers  the  sweep  of  the  flood  extended,  fill- 
ing this  once  beautiful  valley  with  desolation  and  ruin. 
Growing  crops  in  the  lowlands  were  destroyed,  and  in 
Smith's  Valley,  this  county,  the  farming  lands,  compris- 
ing an  area  twelve  by  two  miles,  have  been  stripped  of 
every  vestige  of  soil.  As  far  as  known  300  houses  have 
been  destroyed  in  this  county.  Relief  committees  are 


176  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD, 

now  engaged  and  are  seeking  assistance  for  the  desti- 
tute. 

IN   THE    CUMBERLAND    VALLEY. 

A  heavy  storm  visited  the  entire  length  of  the  Cumber  • 
land  Valley  Railroad.  The  storm  went  over  the  river 
from  the  Maryland  side  and  left  ruin  and  desolation  in 
its  path.  A  barn  belonging  to  a  man  named  Criswell, 
of  Falling  Waters,  was  blown  down,  as  was  also  part  of 
his  house.  A  number  of  other  buildings  were  destroyed. 
A  man  named  Powell  took  shelter  at  a  corn-crib,  which 
blew  over  and  crushed  him  to  death.  John  Vogel  was 
caught  in  the  storm  and  being  carried  along  for  a  con- 
siderable distance  was  hurled  against  a  fence  with  such 
force  as  to  kill  him  instantly. 

CARLISLE. 

In  Carlisle  the  shock  was  felt  in  every  quarter  of  the 
town.  Several  persons  were  injured,  one  severely. 
Miss  Kelly,  of  Springfield,  near  Newville,  was  walking 
from  the  Farmers'  Bank  toward  Kramer's,  and  was 
struck  by  lightning  and  is  in  a  critical  condition.  E.  L. 
Kramer  had  his  head  and  neck  burned  into  a  blister. 
Emma  Eversman  was  burned  upon  the  hand.  A  num- 
ber of  others  were  slightly  injured.  It  injured  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church  tower  and  tore  up  pavements, 
chimneys,  etc.  The  loss  in  Cumberland  Valley  will  foot 
up  very  heavy. 

TYRONE   AND  CLEARFIELD. 

The  Juniata  river  overflowed  its  banks  at  Tyrone  and 
flooded  the  entire  southern  portion  of  the  city,  causing 
great  destruction  to  property  and  the  streets.  People 
living  in  the  flooded  districts  had  to  be  removed  from 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  \Tj 

their  homes  in  wagons  to  places  of  safety.  All  the  rail- 
roads centering  in  this  place  are  badly  damaged  by  the 
floods.  The  water  was  never  known  to  be  so  high  at 
this  place.  At  Curwensville  one  man  was  drowned  and 
at  Clearfield  two  young  ladies. 

The  Susquehanna  river  overflowed  its  banks  at 
Clearfield  and  the  entire  place  was  under  water  and  all 
means  of  escape  cut  off.  Many  people  gathered  in  the 
court  house  and  opera  house  as  a  place  of  safety. 

12 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

ON  his  way  home  from  the  Conemaugh  Valley,  by  the 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad,  a  correspondent  had  to 
pass  through  the  valley  of  the  Potomac.  He  had  not 
heard  of  any  other  flood  than  that  in  the  Conemaugh 
Valley,  and  it  was  in  the  nature  of  a  surprise  to  have 
new  instances  of  distress  presented  to  him.  The  evi- 
dence of  another  flood  appeared  as  soon  as  the  Potomac 
came  in  sight.  Its  usually  pretty  banks  were  lined  with 
debris  of  every  description.  Lumber,  boards,  fences  and 
pieces  of  houses  were  lodged  in  trees,  and  all  were  bent 
in  one  direction,  many  of  them  being  uprooted  by  the 
raging  torrent  that  passed  over  it  on  Friday,  May  3ist. 
For  a  distance  of  over  one  hundred  miles  the  trees  along 
the  shore  were  skinned  of  their  bark  from  the  roots  up 
to  some  of  the  highest  branches,  and  were  yellowish  in 
appearance.  Away  back  over  tree  tops  to  the  slope  of 
the  mountains  and  hills,  sometimes  stretching  away  for 
a  mile,  there  were  evidences  of  the  flood's  fury  in  the 
collections  of  rubbish  and  lumber  marking  the  highest 
point  reached  by  the  water.  Railroad  shanties  and  rail- 
road ties  were  scattered  in  all  directions,  and  sometimes 
it  appeared  that  the  railroad  tracks  themselves  must 
have  been  thirty  feet  under  water. 

A  small  settlement  known  as  Sir  Johns,  south  of  Cum- 
berland, was  in  a  bad  condition.  Its  houses  were  swept 
hither  and  thither,  and  suggested  a  miniature  Cambria 
City.  Railroad  water  tanks  were  broken  and  thrown 
out  of  place,  and  small  shanties  for  railroad  purposes 
(178) 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  179 

were  wrecked.  The  water  poured  all  over  Sir  Johns, 
and  the  debris  from  the  river  lodged  all  around  it. 
Further  along,  where  the  railroad  had  been  repaired, 
telegraph  poles  about  four  feet  high  had  been  set  up 
temporarily  for  miles,  in  the  place  of  the  regular  poles 
swept  down.  Frequent  washouts  were  noticed,  and  a 
most  remarkable  levelling  of  the  trees  along  the  banks. 
Wherever  there  were  houses  the  people  were  engaged 
in  digging  the  mud  and  debris  away  from  the  premises, 
hanging  carpets  and  clothing  out  to  dry  and  cleaning 
and  airing  the  furniture  and  bedding.  In  one  place  a 
railroad  house  a  quarter  of  a  mile  away  from  the  river 
was  overturned  and  wreckage  piled  up  against  it. 

A  BALTIMORE  RELIEF  COMMITTEE  ON  BOARD. 

When  the  train  reached  Hancock,  about  105  miles 
above  Washington,  it  was  boarded  by  a  Relief  Commit- 
tee from  Baltimore  that  had  been  on  the  road  since 
Thursday,  making  personal  inquiry  as  to  the  distress 
and  needs  of  the  people,  and  extending  such  aid  as 
seemed  necessary.  This  committee  consisted  of  Colonel 
William  H.  Love,  representing  the  city  of  Baltimore, 
and  Colonel  John  C.  Legg  and  Mr.  Adolph  Dresel, 
representing  the  Board  of  Trade  and  the  Hour  Exchange 
of  that  city.  Accompanying  the  committee  was  Mr.  D. 
K.  Houck,  travelling  Freight  Agent  of  the  Baltimore 
and  Ohio  Railroad.  From  this  committee  the  corres- 
pondent obtained  a  full  report  of  the  result  of  its  inves- 
tigations all  along  the  river  from  Point  of  Rocks,  below 
Harper's  Ferry,  where  it  began  its  work,  up  to  Hancock, 
where  the  investigation  temporarily  ended.  Colonel 
Love  said  the  committee  was  appointed  after  the  Johns- 


180  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

town  relief  agitation  began,  and  was  sent  out  at  once,  so 
that  the  suffering  of  the  people  near  at  hand  might  not 
be  forgotten  in  the  general  desire  to  send  all  relief  to 
Johnstown.  Never  before,  he  said,  had  there  been  such 
a  flood  along  the  Potomac,  the  water  having  risen  to  a 
height  of  nearly  40  feet,  and  some  of  the  smaller  houses 
having  been  submerged  for  48  hours.  He  said  the  peo- 
ple along  the  river  did  not  become  alarmed  at  first, 
because  of  their  experience  in  previous  floods,  and  that 
many  of  them  for  that  reason  had  to  be  taken  out  of 
their  houses  in  boats  at  the  last  minute.  Fortunately,  he 
said,  the  committee  had  not  heard  of  any  deaths  along 
the  whole  course  of  the  stream. 

POINT  OF  ROCKS  AND  OTHER  POINTS. 

At  Point  of  Rocks,  12  miles  below  Harper's  Ferry, 
the  committee  relieved  31  families,  spending  $1010. 
Robert  Ivory,  a  colored  man  who  lost  his  own  house, 
was  given  $50  and  commended  for  his  heroism  in  making 
three  trips  in  a  boat  through  the  flood  and  driftwood  to 
rescue  a  family  of  five  members,  named  Fox.  This 
place,  which  contains  about  1 50  small  houses,  was  liter- 
ally covered  with  mud.  Houses  were  overturned  and 
swept  away  and  the  streets  were  converted  into  high 
mud  banks.  At  the  lower  end  of  the  town  an  immense 
cornfield,  which  was  said  to  have  been  the  pride  of  the 
State,  was  denuded  of  all  vegetation  and  polished,  as  it 
appeared  from  the  train,  as  smooth  as  the  floor  of  a  danc- 
ing academy.  Heater's  Island,  where  Heater  and  Apple 
fought  a  duel  to  the  death  with  penknives,  was  tenanted 
by  Robert  Cornwell.  He  lost  his  house,  one  horse,  two 
colts,  five  calves,  65  sheep,  4©  hogs,  57  acres  of  corn  and 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FLOOD.  1 8 1 

68  acres  of  wheat.  Not  only  these,  but  nearly  all  of  the 
soil  of  the  island  were  washed  away.  Sixteen  families 
were  relieved  at  Berlin,  which  is  four  or  five  miles  from 
Harper's  Ferry.  They  needed  both  money  and  cloth- 
ing. The  damage,  as  observed  from  the  train,  was  very 
great.  The  water  had  risen  nearly  40  feet  on  some  of 
the  houses,  and  had  smashed  and  torn  others  apart. 
Gardens  were  ruined,  fence's  and  sheds  carried  away,  and 
trees  and  lumber  piled  in  heaps  all  over  the  place.  At 
Knoxville  there  was  but  little  damage,  and  also  at 
Weverton  and  Sandy  Hook.  Relief,  however,  was  ex- 
tended where  needed  there. 

HISTORIC  GROUND  SUBMERGED. 

Harper's  Ferry  was  found  to  be  in  bad  shape,  many 
of  the  houses  of  the  poor  people  being  completely 
wrecked.  The  well-to-do-people  living  on  Bolivar 
Heights  escaped  the  wreckage  sustained  by  those  in  the 
lower  parts  of  the  town.  The  residence  portion  of  the 
latter  appeared  to  be  pretty  well  thrown  over  on  to 
Shenandoah  street.  The  old  arsenal,  with  John  Brown's 
Fort  close  by,  was  submerged  for  a  long  time,  and 
Green's  Hotel  was  drenched  to  the  second  story.  The 
committee  found  that  24-inch  brick  walls  in  this  town 
had  been  crushed  like  egg  shells,  and  that  considerable 
distress  prevailed  among  the  homeless.  The  local  com- 
mittee, it  is  reported,  was  at  work  in  the  Catholic  school- 
house,  the  only  building  then  available  for  the  purpose. 
When  the  committee  arrived,  three  car  loads  of  pro- 
visions and  clothing  that  had  come  from  Philadelphia 
were  being  distributed,  and  the  wants  of  people  were 


1 82  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

being  readily  covered.     The  Baltimore  committee  left 
$300  with  the  local  committee. 

HARPER'S  FERRY. 

The  flood  about  Harper's  Ferry  appeared  to  have  been 
extremely  violent.  The  railroad  Y  bridge  seemed  to  be 
all  right,  but  the  Shenandoah  bridge,  over  which  Stone- 
wall Jackson  passed  during  the  war,  was  partly  swept 
away.  Above  the  ferry  a  canal  boat  was  left  standing 
against  the  rocks  along  the  river  road.  It  contained 
3800  bushels  of  wheat,  and,  although  it  was  at  one  time 
within  a  few  hundred  feet  of  the  bridge,  against  which  it 
would  have  been  dashed  to  pieces,  the  captain  stood  by 
the  helm  until  the  boat  was  hauled  in  to  the  shore  by 
engines.  At  Island  Park,  above  Harper's  Ferry,  the 
wreckage  was  almost  complete.  The  park  was  a  free 
resort,  something  like  what  Ridgway  Park,  Philadelphia, 
used  to  be,  and  the  pavilions,  grand  stand  and  other 
fancy  structures  were  scattered  in  all  directions,  many  of 
them  lodging  on  tree  tops.  Eight  lives  were  lost  there 
in  the  flood.  Four  of  them,  two  women  and  two  men, 
were  cooped  up  in  one  house.  Finally  it  gave  way 
before  the  pressure  of  the  water  and  the  inmates  were 
lost.  There  is  great  damage  done  in  the  town. 

The  bridge  of  the  Shenandoah  Valley  Railroad  across 
the  Potomac,  at  Shepherdstown,  was  destroyed.  At 
Williamsport,  Washington  county,  Md.,  the  flood  was 
seven  feet  higher  than  the  highest  previous  record,  and 
great  damage  resulted.  Between  Williamsport  and  dam 
No.  6  over  20  houses  were  washed  away,  and  innumer- 
able barns,  out-houses  and  fences  went  down  in  the 


THE  JOHXST01VN  FLOOD.  183 

flood.  The  damage  in  Washington  county  is  about 
$150,000. 

Frederick  county,  Md.,  will  lose,  in  the  destruction  of 
bridges,  $100,000,  and  between  Knoxville  and  Harper's 
Ferry  the  loss  will  be  $500,000.  The  railroad  tracks 
between  Weaverton  and  Sandy  Hook  were  badly  washed 
away,  and  in  places  covered  with  two  to  eight  feet  of 
boulders,  earth  and  trees  from  landslides.  Considerable 
damage  was  also  done  to  the  new  bridge  being  con- 
structed by  the  Point  of  Rocks  Bridge  Company,  of 
which  Joseph  D.  Baker  is  President.  It  was  ready  for 
delivery  by  the  contractors,  but  four  spans  of  it  were 
carried  away. 

Washington  county,  Md.,  is  damaged  over  $150,000; 
Frederick  county,  over  $200,000;  Allegheny  county, 
over  £200,000.  At  Cumberland  the  main  streets  were 
covered  by  four  feet  of  water,  and  all  the  railroads  were 
greatly  damaged,  the  West  Virginia  Central  being  the 
heaviest  loser.  Many  miles  of  tracks  and  four  heavy 
iron  bridges  over  the  Potomac  River  were  swept  away. 
The  loss  will  be  enormous. 

Along  the  Potomac  and  the  Chesapeake  and  the  Ohio 
Canal  the  water  was  seven  feet  higher  than  was  ever 
known  before.  Between  forty  and  fifty  houses  along 
these  water-courses  were  swept  away.  Little  George- 
town is  annihilated. 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C. 

The  damage  to  Washington  and  vicinity  was  large, 
but  fortunately  no  lives  were  lost.  The  rise  in  the  Poto- 
mae  caused  it  to  overflow  its  banks  and  that  section  of 
the  city  between  the  Washington  Monument  and  the 


1 84  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

Capitol  lying  along  the  Tiber  Creek  sewer  was  inundated, 
the  water  reaching  the  north  side  of  Pennsylvania  ave- 
nue at  several  points.  From  Third  to  Ninth  street, 
Pennsylvania  avenue  was  flooded  to  a  depth  of  from  one 
to  three  feet,  the  water  reaching  the  floors  of  the  street 
cars.  The  Pennsylvania  Railroad  Station,  which  is  in 
the  line  of  Tiber  Creek,  was  flooded  to  a  depth  of  five  feet, 
the  water  covering  the  streets  a  distance  of  at  least  1000 
feet  north  and  south  of  the  station.  Persons  were  carried 
across  the  stream,  which  was  a  third  of  a  mile  wide,  in 
vehicles  of  every  description,  whose  owners  made  large 
sums  of  money  in  this  manner.  Rowboats  were  also 
used  to  carry  passengers,  and,  during  the  morning, 
when  the  tide  was  high  in  the  river,  boating  excursions, 
in  which  ladies  participated,  were  made  up  on  Pennsyl- 
vania avenue  and  the  cross  streets  in  the  inundated  dis- 
trict. Travel  by  street  cars  was  not  interrupted  on 
Pennsylvania  avenue,  but  the  crosstown  lines  could  go 
no  further  than  the  avenue.  The  damage  to  private 
property  by  the  inundation  will  reach  at  least  $500,000, 
and  the  Government  will,  perhaps,  lose  as  large  a  sum 
in  the  damage  and  destruction  of  the  river  improvements 
now  in  progress.  The  dredging  and  other  machinery 
used  in  this  work  was  swept  from  the  various  moorings 
against  the  Long  Bridge  where  it  is  now  held.  Fears 
were  entertained  for  the  safety  of  the  Long  Bridge.but  it 
survived  the  flood.  The  middle  section  was  submerged, 
the  water  rising  about  12  inches  over  the  floor. 
For  the  purpose  of  assisting  the  structure  to  resist  the 
tremendous  pressure  of  the  current  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad  Company  placed  a  train  of  freight  cars  heavily 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FLOOD.  1 85 

packed  with  coal,  lumber,  stones,  etc.,  upon  the  track  on 
the  bridge. 

The  cellars  of  all  the  stores  on  both  sides  of  the  lower 
part  of  Pennsylvania  avenue  and  the  streets  south  of  it 
were  flooded,  and  a  great  deal  of  damage  was  done  to 
perishable  property.  The  first  street  car  that  started 
across  from  the  south  to  the  north  side  of  the  city 
plowed  its  way  through  several  feet  of  water  and  the  pas- 
sengers were  obliged  to  perch  on  the  backs  of  seats  to 
protect  their  feet  and  legs.  After  that  experience  the 
cars  were  stopped  at  the  edge  of  the  flood  and  passen- 
gers who  did  not  care  to  go  around  the  obstruction  paid 
workmen  or  the  drivers  of  high  hung  wagons  for  trans- 
portation across.  The  cars  running  up  and  down  the 
avenue  continued  to  plow  through  the  water  all  day. 

High  water  mark  was  reached  about  noon ;  from  that 
time  the  water  receded  gradually.  The  point  reached 
by  the  flood  was  three  feet  six  inches  higher  than 
the  highest  recorded  flood  mark.  All  Washington 
was  driving  up  and  down  the  river  in  the  afternoon.  The 
President  came  out  for  a  time  in  the  White  House  car- 
riage accompanied  by  Mr.  McKee  and  "  Baby  "  McKee 
and  drove  around  the  circle  behind  the  White  House 
where  the  water  was  not  very  deep. 

The  loss  will  be  enormous.  Some  place  it  at  $1,000,- 
ooo,  but  no  reliable  figures  can  be  given. 

The  city  was  shut  off  from  communication  with 
the  west  and  south  for  two  days,  and  there  will  be  a 
scarcity  of  milk  and  other  supplies  until  the  roads  were 
repaired  sufficiently  to  allow  railroad  trains  and  wagons 
to  enter  the  city.  The  prolonged  severe  rainy  season 
of  the  last  month  and  the  reports  from  the  Signal  Office 


1 86  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

of  rising  waters  in  the  upper  Potomac  and  Shenandoah 
had  in  a  measure  prepared  river  men  for  the  freshet,  and 
the  loss  is,  therefore,  not  so  great  as  would  otherwise 
have  been,  but  the  actual  occurrence  so  far  exceeded 
their  expectations  that  much  property  was  lost  that 
might  have  been  saved. 

Below  the  Aqueduct  bridge  as  far  as  Rock  Creek,  the 
river's  bank  is  lined  with  business  places  of  all  descrip- 
tions, including  coal  dumps,  warehouses,  fertilizing  man- 
ufactories, cement  works,  boat  houses  and  mills.  The 
owners  of  these  places  worked  hard  to  save  their  prop- 
erty and  succeeded  to  a  considerable  extent,  but  the 
waters  gained  on  them  so  rapidly  that  they  were  forced 
to  desist  before  they  had  accomplished  all  that  they  de- 
sired. One  of  the  heaviest  losers  is  Mr.  H.  C.  Winship, 
whose  wharf  at  the  mouth  of  Rock  Creek  was  badly 
wrecked.  He  lost  a  large  quantity  of  coal,  and  is  prob- 
ably poorer  by  $25,000.  The  Analostan  Boat  Club  lose 
about  the  same  amount.  Their  boathouse  was  valued  at 
$12,000,  and  fronted  sixty-two  feet  on  the  water,  with  a 
depth  of  seventy-eight  feet.  It  had  been  fitted  up  at  an 
expense  of  about  $2000  and  was  stored  with  barges, 
shells  and  pleasure  craft,  besides  a  considerable  amount 
of  personal  effects.  It  withstood  the  fury  of  the  waves 
until  the  evening  when  the  underpinning  gave  way  and 
it  rocked  to  and  fro  for  about  an  hour,  when  it  capsized 
and  was  swept  down  stream,  smashing  against  the  Long 
Bridge  and  going  completely  to  pieces.  This  club  is  the 
oldest  in  the  district  and  its  whole  property  is  gone  at 
this  swoop  of  the  angry  waters. 

The  Chesapeake  and  Ohio  Canal  Company  are  the 
heaviest  losers.  Their  loss  can  not  be  less  than  $100,000. 


THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FLOOD.  187 

The  Washington  Monument  was  surrounded  on  all 
sides  by  water,  which  stretched  far  up  in  the  White 
House  lot. 

FREDERICK,  MD. 

In  the  neighborhood  of  Frederick,  the  wheat  and  corn 
fields  have  been  generally  destroyed.  All  the  county 
bridges  have  been  swept  away,  and  there  was  no  con- 
nection by  rail  for  several  days.  Just  beyond  the 
bridge  300  feet  of  bank  and  steel  track  went  with  the 
flood.  The  loss  sustained  by  the  storm  will  be  almost 
half  a  million  of  dollars.  The  only  loss  of  life  near  here 
was  that  of  Mrs.  Charles  McFadden  and  Miss  Carrie 
Moore  at  Taneytown,  who,  in  attempting  to  cross  the 
stream,  were  swept  from  their  vehicle  and  drowned. 

PORT    DEPOSIT,    MD. 

The  Susquehanna  river  rose  considerably  ;  the  current 
was  very  swift,  and  the  surface  of  the  stream  was  thick 
with  logs.  The  town  of  Port  Deposit  was  flooded  from 
stem  to  stern. 

The  total  loss  of  life  by  the  flood  in  Maryland  is  1 1. 
John  T.  Ford  has  offered  his  theatre  for  a  benefit  for  the 
Johnstown  people.  At  Lutherville  Female  Seminary 
many  of  the  students  come  from  Johnstown  and.  that 
neighborhood.  The  pupils  are  in  a  state  of  wild  alarm 
for  the  safety  of  their  parents  and  other  relatives  and 
special  religious  services  were  held  there  Sunday. 

NEAR  LANCASTER,    PA. 

An  enormous  quantity  of  boom  logs  have  gone  down 
the  Susquehanna,  and  were  gorged  at  Turkey  Hill, 
below  Columbia.  At  Marietta  all  of  Front  street  was  under 


1 88  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

water,  and  the  Pennsylvania  bridge  at  Chickies  was  under 
four  feet  of  water.  The  Pennsylvania  Canal,  at  and 
above  Columbia,  was  greatly  damaged,  and  all  the  rolling 
mills  and  planing  mills  were  submerged.  Serious  danger 
was  threatened  at  Washington  borough. 

Two  men  passed  Columbia  on  a  raft  Saturday  morning 
and  were  carried  over  the  dam,  and  are  believed  to  have 
beendrowned.  The  lumber  yards  at  Marietta  were  all  swept 
away. 

Sixty-five  rafts  broke  loose  from  their  moorings,  near 
Wrightsville,  and  were  carried  down  the  Susquehanna, 
involving  a  loss  of  over  $50,000. 

SHAMOKIN,    PA. 

The  heavy  rain  caused  great  damage  to  property  in 
this  vicinity.  Seven  bridges  and  twenty  houses  have 
been  swept  away.  The  damage  to  mining  property  can- 
not be  estimated.  A  number  of  collieries  were  flooded 
and  many  were  completely  wrecked.  It  was  two  weeks  be- 
fore the  miners  could  resume.  The  Reading  Coal  and 
Iron  Company  will  be  the  greatest  sufferer.  The  losses 
are  estimated  at  $250,000.  There  were  no  fatalities. 

RICHMOND,  VA. 

The  flood  in  the  James  River  showed  a  height  of  a 
little  over  26  feet  at  Rockets'  wharves,  which  was  within 
2 1/2  feet  of  the  unprecedented  flood  of  1877. 

At  Cameron's  run,  Va.,25O  yards  of  the  Virginia  Mid- 
land track  was  washed  away.  There  is  also  a  washout 
at  Seminary  Crossing.  The  culvert  at  Four  Mile  Run, 
between  Washington  and  Alexandria,  is  washed  away. 

The  only  large  bridge  between  Quantico  and  Rich- 


THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FL  OOD.  \  89 

mond,  on  the  Richmond  and  Fredericksburg  Railroad, 
has  been  washed  away. 

ELMIRA  N.  Y. 

The  water  at  Elmira  was  12  to  18  inches  higher  than 
ever  before.  Two  bodies  floated  down  the  river.  A 
roof  upon  which  three  persons  were  clinging  is  said  to 
have  passed  by  the  city. 

The  Erie  Railroad  bridge  was  anchored  in  its  place 
by  two  trains  of  loaded  freight  cars.  The  water  rose  to 
the  cars  which  with  the  bridge  acted  as  a  dam  and 
forced  the  water  back  through  the  city  on  the  north  side. 

A  considerable  portion  of  the  village  of  Canascraga 
was  inundated.  The  Main  street  iron  bridge  was  car- 
ried forty  rods  down  the  stream.  It  is  completely 
wrecked.  At  Andover  a  dozen  bridges  were  washed 
away  and  all  growing  crops  are  ruined.  Several  bridges 
on  the  outskirts  of  Hornellsville  are  gone.  The  high- 
ways at  that  city  are  impassable.  The  railroads  will  suf- 
fer greatly,  particularly  the  Erie,  whose  property  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  shops  at  Hornellsville  were  completely 
submerged,  work  being  totally  abandoned. 

Similar  reports  were  received  from  Belmont,  Danville, 
Portageville,  Olean,  Mount  Morris,  Rochester,  Haver- 
straw  and  Nyack,  N.  Y. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

If  tears  and  sympathy  and  money  could  have  brought 
back  to  the  bereaved  and  sorrowing  people  of  the  Cone- 
maugh  Valley,  and  the  other  inundated  districts,  their 
loved  ones  and  their  homes  and  property,  they  would 
not  now  be  mournful.  When  the  news  of  the  calamity 
was  first  flashed  over  the  wires,  the  one  thought  of  the 
American  people  was,  "  How  shall  we  help  them  ?  "  and 
immediately  every  one  began  to  think  of  the  only  means 
left  to  help  the  living.  There  was  no  necessity  for 
appeals  to  the  people,  they  knew  what  was  required  and 
they  responded  generously. 

More  than  two  millions  of  dollars  in  cash,  and  goods 
to  the  value  of  another  half  a  million  were  contributed 
to  the  Relief  Fund  within  fourteen  days,  and  the  sub- 
scriptions are  still  coming  in  from  every  part  of  the 
United  States. 

There  is  yet  sad  destruction  and  suffering  in  the  inun- 
dated districts,  but  the  desolation  is  gradually  passing 
away.  The  cry  for  bread,  raiment  and  shelter  has  been 
silenced  and  one  industrial  establishment  after  the  other, 
one  store  after  another  are  re-opening  and  soon  those 
who  have  been  spared  by  the  floods  will  find  employ- 
ment. The  death  roll  has  steadily  diminished  as  the 
truth  became  better  understood.  At  first  it  was  thought, 
that  from  12,000  to  15,000  lives  had  been  lost  by  this 
dreadful  calamity,  but  it  is  believed  now  that  from  5000 
to  7000  will  cover  the  whole  list.  That  is  sad  enough, 
indeed,  but  it  is  a  mournful  satisfaction  to  know  that 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  191 

fully  one  half  of  those  who  were  reported  as  having  per- 
ished are  saved.  The  clouds  are  passing  away  thanks 
to  the  generous  benevelence  of  the  American  people. 

A  RETROSPECT. 

Both  the  gathering  of  news  and  the  writing  and 
transmission  of  dispatches  have  been  carried  on  at  Johns- 
town under  extraordinary  difficulties.  The  readers  can 
hardly  imagine  at  what  cost  of  energy  and  effort,  of 
hard  work  and  endurance,  of  actual  peril  and  privation, 
the  daily  report  from  the  scene  of  the  great  disaster  have 
been  furnished  them.  The  early  dispatches  may  have 
been  inadequate,  but  it  is  a  wonder  that  they  came 
at  all. 

Great  events  which  call  large  numbers  of  correspon- 
dents together  are  usually  anticipated  and  provided  for, 
but  here  the  whole  attention  of  the  world  was  suddenly 
concentrated  upon  an  isolated  and  almost  inacessible 
spot,  where  mere  existence  was  a  hardship,  and  where 
the  facilities  for  correspondence  had  been  practically 
obliterated. 

The  strain  has  fallen  upon  the  telegraph  operators  not 
less  than  upon  the  reporters,  and  the  telegraph  and 
railroad  companies  are  entitled  to  the  warmest  acknowl- 
edgement for  the  energy  with  which  they  have  striven 
to  meet  the  extraordinary  requirements  so  abruptly 
thrown  upon  them.  Successful  newspaper  work  is 
largely  dependent  upon  telegraphic  facilities.  In  this 
case  its  limitations  were  those  imposed  by  the  destruc- 
tion of  most  of  the  direct  wires,  and  what  was  accom- 
plished would  have  been  impossible  without  the  earnest 
efforts  made  by  all  the  companies  and  their  officials. 


192  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

Under  such  circumstances  it  was  inevitable  that  the 
reports  of  an  occurrence  so  stupendous  as  this  flood  and 
so  far  beyond  all  experience  or  imagination,  should  be 
more  or  less  fragmentary.  No  man  could  take  in  the 
whole  magnitude  of  the  scene  at  once,  and  there  was  no 
time  to  gather  up  the  infinitude  of  details  into  one  com- 
prehensive picture.  Each  man  could  but  report  what  he 
himself  saw  or  heard,  and  while  many  of  the  dispatches 
have  been  admirably  intelligent  and  clear,  and  many  of 
the  incidents  have  been  brilliantly  described,  the  whole 
great  story  of  the  flood  could  not  be  told  in  that  way. 

Our  book  is  the  result  of  the  observations  of  an  eye 
witness  as  well  as  a  compilation  of  the  most  intelligent 
reports  of  well  known  correspondents  and  will  give  to 
the  reader  a  well  digested,  comprehensive  and  connected 
description  of  the  flood,  and  their  sad  results.  With 
the  aid  of  the  illustrations,  gotten  up  from  photographs, 
it  will  convey  a  clearer  idea  of  the  event  and  its  causes, 
than  has  been  possible  before. 

THE  REPORTERS. 

The  Public  Ledger  writes  about  the  reporters  and  their 
good  work  as  follows  : 

"  In  the  final  summing  up  of  the  good  work  which 
was  done  by  the  noble  army  of  men  and  women  who 
went  to  the  Valley  of  the  Conemaugh  to  labor  for  the 
living  and  bury  the  dead  sufferers  by  the  flood,  that 
which  was  done  by  the  reporters  of  the  newspaper  press 
should  not  be  forgotten.  They  were  among  the  very 
first  to  reach  Johnstown,  many  of  them  starting  from 
their  offices,  without  any  preparation,  immediately  upon 
receipt  of  the  dispatches  of  Friday  night  which  an- 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  193 

nounced  the  terrible  calamity.  They  journeyed  over  all 
sorts  of  unaccustomed  roads  to  their  destination,  walk- 
ing, climbing  hills,  fording  flooded  streams,  their  cloth- 
ing soaked  by  the  continuous  rains,  and  going  for  ten, 
twenty  or,  in  some  cases,  for  thirty  hours,  without  food. 
Arrived  at  Johnstown,  there  were  no  accommodations 
for  them.  They  were  not  classed  with  the  sufferers,  nor 
with  the  authorities  or  relief  committees.  They  were 
simply  a  private  corps  of  observers  and  recorders  of 
things,  with  no  place  in  the  general  plan  of  economy, 
and,  consequently,  they  were  obliged  to  look  after  them- 
selves. They  had  money,  but  it  was  only  a  little  more 
useful  to  them  at  times  than  it  would  have  been  in  the 
sands  of  the  desert.  For  the  sufferers  and  the  author- 
ized bodies  of  relief  there  were  houses  or  tents  and 
food  provided,  but  for  the  reporters  nothing  except  what 
they  could  secure  by  their  own  efforts  and  wit. 

"There  was  apparently  no  class  of  strangers  at  Johns- 
town who  fared  worse  than  reporters,  though  they  were 
treated  with  great  courtesy  and  consideration  by  all  those 
in  authority,  from  General  Hastings  to  the  humblest 
subordinate,  as  well  as  by  the  wretched  survivors,  some 
of  whom  gave  them  shelter  and  shared  their  food  with 
them.  Their  trouble  was  that  they  were  in  the  valley 
of  Death  as  an  independent,  detached  corps,  working 
apart  from  the  relief  corps.  It  is  true  they  were  work- 
ing ostensibly  for  their  respective  newspapers,  but  they 
were  really  doing  the  most  valuable  and  efficient  work 
for  the  sufferers.  They  worked  day  and  night,  dragging 
through  the  deep  mud,  climbing  over  the  piles  of  debris, 
visiting  the  morgues,  the  hospitals,  seeking  every  sort 
of  information  which  the  country  desired  to  have  regard- 

'3 


194  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

ing  the  calamity.  There  were  no  men  at  Johnstown 
who  worked  earlier  or  later  or  harder  than  the  reporters, 
none  who,  apparently,  were  less  comfortably  fed  and 
sheltered.  They  slept  in  improvised  sheds,  in  freight 
cars,  very  few  of  them  having  changes  of  clothing  with 
them. 

"  The  greatest  value  of  their  work  was  that  it  revealed 
day  by  day  to  the  entire  country  the  vastness  of  the 
disaster,  the  greatness  of  the  distress  pervading  the  de- 
vastated valley,  the  urgent  need  of  relief  and  what  things 
were  most  urgently  wanted.  Their  clear,  graphic, 
earnest  accounts  of  the  ruin  that  was  all  about  them,  of 
the  misery,  grief,  suffering  which  they  saw,  awakened 
and  kept  awake  the  noble  benevolence  of  the  people  and 
caused  it  to  flow  in  such  broad  and  generous  streams  of 
helpfulness. 

"  With  pen  and  pencil  the  newspaper  reporters  illus- 
trated in  the  clearest,  most  effective  manner,  the  destruc- 
tion of  life  and  property  that  the  flood  had  left  behind  it 
throughout  the  valley.  They  were  the  faithful  illus- 
trators of  the  entire  scene  of  desolation — the  brief,  faith- 
ful chroniclers  of  all  the  misery  which  prevailed  and 
which  cried  out  to  the  people  for  relief.  No  one  can 
doubt  that  what  they  wrote  and  pictured  was,  in  thou- 
sands of  instances,  an  inspiration  to  the  charitable  to 
give  freely  to  the  great  aggregate  fund  contributed. 

"  Apart  from  the  influences  they  thus  exerted,  the 
work  of  the  reporters  was  well  done.  It  was  most 
generally  free  from  sensationalism,  being,  with  most  rare 
exception,  a  plain,  direct  narrative  of  passing  scenes  and 
events.  All  things  considered,  the  work  of  the  reporters 
at  Johnstown  is  deserving  of  high  praise." 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

BACK  TO  THE  FATED  VALLEY. 

After  the  proclamation  of  Governor  Beaver,  to  the  State 
Board  of  Health,  declaring  the  drift  in  the  Conemaugh  to  be  a 
public  nuisance,  which  the  Board  had  power  to  abate ;  afu  r 
General  Hastings  had  organized  his  working  forces  so  as  to 
cut  through  the  awful  pile  of  drift  in  the  river  and  cleanse, 
the  city  in  the  shortest  possible  time ;  and  after  the  Committee 
for  the  distribution  of  relief  had  been  announced  by  the  Gov- 
ernor; every  sufferer  from  the  horrible  visitation,  every 
dweller  in  the  Stricken  Valley,  and  every  sympathetic  bosom 
throughout  the  land  gave  a  sigh  of  relief.  Now,  order  was  to 
take  the  place  of  confusion.  Now  people  could  take  a  mo- 
ment to  think.  Now  the  threat  of  disease  would  be  averted. 
Now  thought  of  the  horror  would  be  engrossed  in  repairing 
damages  under  some  kind  of  system.  Now,  the  homeless 
could  return  and  engage  in  study  of  what  was  best  for  them 
in  the  future. 

Every  aspiration  and  energy  was  turned  to  the  work  of  san- 
itation, and  to  earnest  effort  to  restore  the  ruined  valley  to 
something  like  its  former  status.  By  Sunday,  June  16,  life 
was  quite  in  its  old  routine  at  Johnstown,  at  least  so  far  as  the 
observances  of  the  day  went.  There  was  no  Protestant  Epis- 
copal Church,  but  Bishop  Whitehead  conducted  the  services 
in  a  school-house  on  the  hill  opposite  the  Penna.  R.  R.  Station. 

The  Methodists  congregated  in  the  open  in  front  of  their  chapel 
(195) 


1 96  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD. 

and  there  praised  God  with  full  hearts.  The  Presbyterians  held 
open-air  services,  and  the  Catholics  gathered  in  the  unde- 
stroyed  churches  above  and  below  Johnstown. 

The  voices  of  prayer  and  the  strains  of  hymns  were 
mingled  with  the  echoes  of  the  fearful  dynamite  blasts  which 
were  being  employed  to  widen  the  breach  in  the  gorge  of  de- 
bris. Hundreds  of  men  pushed  their  way  into  the  unex- 
plored crannies  of  the  town  in  search  for  the  dead.  Barrel 
after  barrel  of  coal  oil  was  rolled  upon  the  debris,  and  there 
emptied  as  a  preliminary  to  those  fires  which  had  now  been 
found  the  most  efficacious  way  of  disposing  of  the  matter  which 
composed  the  gorge.  All  these  were  interruptions  to  the  solemn 
worship  of  the  day,  but  such  had  to  be.  The  valley  of  death 
was  coining  to  life.  Let  who  might  stop  to  pray,  but  let  who 
must  work  unceasingly. 

In  speaking  of  the  criticism  of  the  heavy  charges  of  dyna- 
mite which  he  fired,  Major  Philips,  engineer  in  charge,  said  : — 
"  It  was  absolutely  necessary  to  fire  heavy  charges  to  open  a 
channel  through  the  gorge.  No  one  will  attempt  to  say  that 
the  opening  of  that  gorge  was  not  of  paramount  importance. 
It  was  not  only  endangering  the  health  of  the  people  in  the 
valley,  but  as  long  as  it  was  closed  there  was  the  additional 
danger  of  the  river  rising  and  washing  out  all  the  people  who 
are  living  in  tents  on  the  flats.  The  river  was  very  high  last 
night,  and  if  that  channel  had  not  been  through  every  tent  in 
the  flat  would  probably  have  been  washed  away.  I  admit 
that  we  fired  a  charge  of  500  pounds  and  that  is  the  charge 
which  opened  the  gorge. 

The  report  that  the  bodies  were  blown  into  the  air  along 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  1 97 

with  the  debris  is  without  foundation.  I  had  the  men  make 
a  careful  inspection  of  the  surroundings  before  each  charge 
was  fired.  Occasionally  they  found  a  body,  but  it  was  so 
badly  decomposed  that  it  was  unrecognizable.  I  myself  found 
a  couple  of  heads  which  had  been  severed  from  the  bodies.  I 
also  found  the  leg  of  a  boy  in  a  gum  boot.  The  leg  had  been 
burned  off  at  the  thigh.  These  were  all  removed  and  buried. 
As  soon  as  I  was  informed  that  the  heavy  charges  were  shak- 
ing the  buildings  in  the  town  I  at  once  ordered  the  men  to 
reduce  them  to  200  pounds.  To-morrow  I  will  begin  to  fire 
charges  of  100  pounds  each  near  the  bridge.  The  firing  will 
be  kept  up  all  day,  and  will  loosen  a  great  deal  of  debris  that 
is  now  buried  in  the  river." 

TIP   AT   THE    MIGHTY    DAM. 

A  three  days'  visit  to  the  fatal  dam  and  its  vicinity  by  a 
correspondent,  revealed  the  fact  that  the  overflow  of  the  lake 
and  consequent  destruction  of  the  breast  of  the  dam  were  as 
much  due  to  natural  as  artificial  causes.  Each  person  was 
willing  to  make  affidavit  that  he  had  never  before  seen  so 
much  rain.  Several  were  quite  sure  that  the  fall  of  water 
on  the  day  preceding  the  bursting  of  the  dam  utterly 
precluded  the  possibility  of  saving  it,  and,  most  important 
point  of  all,  two  distinct  water  spouts  were  located.  They  did 
immense  damage,  one  tearing  a  hole  in  the  ground  almost  ten 
feet  d-eep,  and  both  Avashing  away  bridges  and  flooding  acres 
of  good  farming  land. 

On  the  mountain  ridges  the  earth  had  been  washed  from 
the  roads,  and  the  rocks  loom  up  jagged  and  angry.  Out  on 


198  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD. 

the  mountain  brow,  forming  an  irregular  semi-circle  above  the 
late  Lake  Conemaugh,  farmers  engaged  repairing  their  wagon- 
ways,  building  bridges,  filling  in  washouts,  and  otherwise  re- 
storing the  damage  done  on  the  memorable  night  of  Thursday, 
May  30.  Milldams  were  burst  like  bubbles  and  Muddy  Run 
and  South  Fork  Creek,  in  the  memory  of  the  proverbial  oldest 
resident,  were  never  known  to  be  so  high.  Six  inches  of 
water  is  the  usual  depth  of  these  streams  before  they  flow  into 
the  basin,  once  the  reservoir.  On  the  day  preceding  the 
flood  they  rose  in  a  few  hours  to  a  height  of  from  four  to  five 
feet.  Their  conduct  was  considered  inexplicable  until  the 
rain-spout  and  cloud-burst  discoveries  provided  ample  ex- 
planation. 

About  10.20  on  Thursday  night,  May  30,  Mr.  Heidenfelter 
and  his  family,  while  wrapped  in  slumber,  were  suddenly 
awakened  by  a  rumbling  roaring  sound,  emanating  from  an 
indefinable  object  300  feet  in  front  of  the  house.  The  dwelling 
stands  on  a  gentle  slope.  Between  this  slope  and  the  one  op- 
posite is  a  lowland  four  or  five  acres  in  extent.  The  Heiden- 
felter family  were  badly  frightened  by  the  strange  sound,  but 
the  next  moment  were  even  more  startled,  for  succeeding  the 
noise  a  tremendous  downpour  of  water  occurred.  A  heavy 
fall  of  rain  descended  on  the  housetop,  but  it  was  in  the  bot- 
tom, a  few  feet  away,  that  the  force  of  the  deluge  was  spent. 
The  water  roared  and  hissed,  and  evidently  came  down  the 
side  of  the  opposite  hill  in  a  torrent.  For  an  hour  the 
Heidenfelter  family  lay  quaking  in  their  beds,  and  until 
morning  the  rain  poured  down. 

"Indeed   I  thought   the  last   day  had   come,"  said   Mi's. 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  199 

Heidenfelter  seriously,  when  questioned  as  to  the  occurrence. 
"  I  never  heard  anything  like  it  in  my  life.  I  wanted  my 
husband  to  get  up  and  see  Avhat  the  matter  was,  but  it  was 
dark  and  he  could  have  done  no  good.  In  the  morning,  a"s 
soon  as  AVC  could  see,  the  fields  were  covered  with  water  four 
or  five  feet  deep.  Up  at  Mr.  Heidenf'elter's  new  tannery  the 
sand  was  piled  over  almost  everything.  People  say  the  noise 
we  heard  was  a  water-spout,  but  I've  never  seen  one  and  don't 
know  how  they  act.  One  thing  I  do  know,  and  that  is  I 
thought  the  day  of  judgment  had  come  when  the  roaring  and 
the  awful  rain  happened.  It  sounded  just  as  if  a  big  tank 
had  opened  at  the  bottom,  and  all  the  water  was  falling  out 
at  once.  The  rain  tore  big  holes  in  the  ground.  While  we 
were  sorry  for  the  damage  done  to  our  oat  fields,  tannery  and 
milk,  we  thought  ourselves  lucky  to  get  off  with  our  lives.  It 
was  a  good  thing  it  didn't  touch  our  house." 

Several  hundred  yards  up  the  little  valley  alluded  to,  a  hole 
in  the  earth  almost  ten  feet  deep  may  be  found.  It  is  scooped 
out  of  the  loom  and  clay,  and  was  the  work  of  the  water-spout. 
It  looks  as  if  a  powerful  shovel,  with  an  area  of  many  feet, 
had  been  dashed  into  the  ground  by  some  mighty  force  and 
with  a  twirl  had  torn  out  an  immense  chunk  of  earth. 

Said  Mr.  Cole,  a  neighbor  of  Mrs.  Heidenfelter :  "  I  never 
saw  so  much  rain  in-  all  my  life.  You've  heard  of  the  great 
wet  seasons  in  California  in  ;52  and  '62  ?  Well,  I  was  there,- 
and  through  them  both,  but  never  did  I  see  so  much  falling 
water  as  here.  It  came  down  in  sheets  and  saturated  the 
ground  for  acres.  About  10.30  o'clock  we  could  hear  the 
cloud  burst.  There  must  have  been  two  away  up  in  the 


200  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD. 

mountain,  beside  the  one  on  Mr.  Heidenfeiter's  place. 
Sounded  something  like  thunder?  Yes,  they  did,  but  there 
was  a  difference,  and  I  knew  what  the  noises  meant.  Well, 
the  cloud-bursts  announced  the  rain  and  it  fell  steadily  until 
morning.  When  we  got  up  this  road  we're  on — you  can  see 
it  slants — was  the  bed  of  a  turbulent  creek,  and  nobody 
could  venture  out  of  the  house." 

Mr.  Varner  stated  that  for  thirty-seven  years  they  had 
never  had  such  water  experience. 

"  You  can  imagine  what  it  was,"  said  he,  "  when  on  Friday 
morning,  every  one  up  here  felt  sure  the  dam  would  go.  No, 
sir,  never  before  did  we  have  any  such  fear,  but  the  way 
it  had  rained,  and  the  manner  in  which  the  creeks  were 
acting,  was  enough  to  make  us  feel  sure  that  no  dam  could 
stand  against  such  pressure.  John  Rhodes,  whose  father 
owns  a  mill  two  miles  up  the  South  Fork,  says  they  never 
knew  of  such  a  rain  there." 

It  would  appear  that  the  winds  causing  the  cloud-bursts  or 
water-spouts,  had  commenced  to  whirl  at  8  o'clock  on  Thurs- 
day evening,  on  the  northern  edge  of  Lake  Conemaugh.  From 
this  point  they  evidently  circled  around  the  eastern  side,  and 
probably  finished  their  journey  at  Heidenfeiter's  on  the  west 
of  the  lake,  in  the  middle  of  the  night.  It  was  doubtless  the 
cloud-burst  at  the  latter  place  that  filled  Stony  Creek  to  over- 
flowing. 

HOMES   ONCE   MORE. 

The  2500  men  which  General  Hastings  had  at  work  up  to 
the  17th  of  June  had  now  widened  the  breach  in  the  debris  so 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  201 

as  to  admit  of  the  passage  of  boats  up  and  down  the  channel 
of  the  river,  and  avert  all  fear  in  case  of  a  freshet  in  the 
stream.  In  the  five  districts,  into  which  he  had  divided  the 
flooded  section,  the  laborers  were  working  with  such  industry 
as  to  warrant  the  thought  that  temporary  homes  were  now  in 
order.  An  enterprising  Chicago  firm  had  already  offered  to 
ship  100  frame  dwellings  to  the  scene,  which  could  be  erected 
almost  in  a  twinkling,  and  whose  cost  would  not  exceed  $200 
each.  This  offer  was  accepted  by  General  Hastings,  and  he 
fully  expected  to  see  one  hundred  families  comfortably  housed 
inside  a  week.  He  said : — "  We  shall  put  all  the  carpenters 
we  can  get  to  work  building  new  houses  on  lots  from  which 
buildings  were  taken  by  the  flood  as  soon  as  the  lumber 
arrives.  It  will  begin  to  come  this  week,  and  I  think  Johns- 
town will  look  very  much  like  a  city  by  next  fall.  When  the 
houses  shall  have  been  erected  I  will  furnish  the  householders 
with  cooking  utensils,  cots,  bedding  and  such  articles  as  they 
need  to  begin  with  again,  and  when  they  get  ready  they  can 
build  better  houses." 

The  arrangements  for  securing  and  distributing  provisions 
were  now  in  permanent  working  order.  All  the  improvised 
camps  for  soldiers  and  civilians  were  placed  under  severe 
inspection  and  their  sites  changed  where  found  necessary.  On 
the  night  of  the  17th  a  big  blaze  shot  through  one  of  the 
cupolas  of  the  Cambria  Iron  Works.  "  Hello !"  remarked 
General  Hastings,  who  was  sitting  in  front  of  his  head-quarters, 
"  that  is  the  first  flame  since  the  flood.  It  looks  like  old  times 
again."  The  blaze  came  from  the  first  blasting  furnace  that 
had  been  put  in  operation  since  the  day  the  flood  swept 


202  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

through  the  valley.  It  told  plainer  than  words  of  the  progress 
the  Cambria  Company  was  making  in  putting  the  works  in 
order  for  the  employment  of  5000  or  6000  men,  the  majority 
of  whom  had  been  engaged  in  clearing  away  the  debris, 
which  was  packed  seven  or  eight  feet  deep  in  the  yards.  It  was 
in  one  of  the  lower  mills,  which  had  not  been  so  badly  dam- 
aged, that  the  blasting  furnace  was  started  in  that  night.  The 
fitful  flame  that  shot  through  the  cupola  was  a  most  welcome 
sight  to  the  people  of  Cambria  City  and  Johnstown.  It 
recalled  the  days,  not  long  ago,  when  this  was  a  prosperous 
valley  instead  of  a  great  stretch  of  sand  covered  with  rocks 
and  debris,  and  when  scores  of  such  flames  were  illuminating 
the  mountains  which  surround  the  works. 

THE    EPIDEMIC. 

Fears  became  rife  that  the  scourge  of  epidemic  would  be 
added  to  the  horrors  of  flood.  Hundreds  of  people  fled  the 
scene  entirely ;  others  remained  to  croak  over  a  devastation 
which  in  their  imaginations  was  more  appalling  than  any  other. 
Workmen  performed  their  labors  with  the  utmost  difficulty 
among  the  sickening  debris,  and  the  smells  of  decaying  animal 
matter  were  alarming  indeed.  But  the  doctors  belonging  to 
the  State  Board  of  Health  arrived  on  the  scene,  and  their 
presence  was  assuring.  They  put  new  heart  into  the  people 
by  declaring  that  there  was  no  danger  of  an  epidemic  if  only 
all  would  act  prudently.  They  poured  disinfectants  into  the 
valley,  and  every  danger-spot  got  its  dose.  Says  Dr.  Mat- 
thews : — "  We  are  distributing  tons  of  disinfectants  daily,  and 
the  kinds  are  legion.  Every  man  who  wants  his  disinfectant 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  203 

used  is  sending  it  here  in  large  quantities.  We  have  a  large 
supply,  but  still  we  must  have  more.  The  people  call  for  it 
just  as  they  go  to  the  different  relief  stations  for  food  and  cloth- 
ing. Sometimes  there  are  a  hundred  people  in  line  waiting 
for  their  turn  to  get  a  supply  of  disinfectants." 

All  the  morgues  Avere  consolidated  into  one.  The  workmen 
on  the  debris  were  encouraged  to  burn  everything  that  was 
inflammable.  Butcher  shops  were  opened  in  proximity  to 
Johnstown  in  order  that  a  supply  of  fresh  meats  might  be 
secured,  and  the  danger  from  the  salt  meats  which  had  been  so 
largely  contributed  by  friends,  might  be  avoided.  Of  his 
work  on  June  17,  Col.  Spangler  said  : — "There  is  great  need 
of  shoes  here.  Many  of  the  people  are  reported  to  be  almost 
barefooted,  and  there  are  but  ninety-six  cases  of  shoes  in  the 
commissary  department.  Up  to,  and  including  to  day,  he  has 
been  furnishing  the  contractors  with  provisions  for  their  men. 
The  contractors  have  promised  to  have  their  own  provisions 
here  to  morrow.  This  will  relieve  the  relief  committee  of  the 
necessity  of  feeding  about  twenty-five  hundred  men.  Here  is 
the  list  of  people  supplied  with  food  and  clothing  to-day; 
Cambria  City,  575  families,  2515 ;  Conemaugh  Borough,  550 
families,  4500 ;  Morrellville,  431  families,  2574 ;  Johnstown, 
1500  families,  6000 ;  Franklin  Borough,  145  families,  725  ; 
Kernville  Borough,  510  families,  2838 ;  total,  3651  families, 
19,212. 

And  of  her  highly  useful  work  in  connection  Avith  the 
"  Ladies'  Aid  Society,"  Mrs.  Mclntyre,  said : — It  is  not  the 
policy  of  the  Children's  Aid  Society  to  send  orphans  away 
from  JohnstoAvn  to  find  permanent  homes.  There  are  any 


204  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  PL  0  OD. 

number  of  good  people  in  this  place  who  are  willing  and 
anxious  to  care  for  all  destitute  children.  We  will  be  glad  to 
send  them  away  temporarily,  but  they  will  all  find  homes  in 
Johnstown.  I  think  it  is  a  reflection  upon  the  good  people 
here  to  talk  of  sending  the  children  away  to  seek  homes  in 
strange  cities.  They  will  all  be  cared  for  right  here." 

The  Philadelphia  firemen  were  at  wrork  all  of  to-day.  Nine 
engines  were  in  different  parts  of  the  city.  One  was  engaged 
in  pumping  out  the  gas  well  and  had  nearly  all  the  water  out 
of  it  to-night.  The  other  two  Philadelphia  engines  were  over 
near  Kernville  pumping  out  wells.  The  Philadelphia  boys 
are  receiving  great  credit  for  the  work  they  are  doing. 

Many  of  the  property  owners  here  have  decided  to  give  the 
tenants  the  use  of  their  house  for  one  month  free.  Rent  will 
be  resumed  at  the  expiration  of  that  time,  and  it  is  understood 
there  will  be  no  reduction. 

Seventeen  more  bodies  were  dug  from  the  wreckage  here 
to-day.  Among  them  was  the  body  of  Mrs.  Annie  Bates,  of 
Racine,  "VVis.  She  was  a  passenger  on  the  day  express.  Be- 
sides a  gold  watch  and  chain  and  several  rings,  a  draft  for 
$64,  and  $65  in  money  were  found  on  her  person.  She  was 
buried  promptly,  as  were  all  the  other  bodies  found.  Among 
those  found  were  the  three  children  of  James  Clark.  They 
were  tangled  and  entwined  about  each  other,  and  were  horri- 
bly decomposed.  All  the  others  are  as  yet  unidentified. 

On  this  date  (June  17),  the  Commission  appointed  bv  (Joy. 
Beaver,  to  distribute  the  donations  to  the  flood  sufferers, 
started  on  its  tour  of  inspection.  It  had  in  hand  a  highly  im- 
portant and  delicate  mission,  and  a  munificent  sum  at  its  dis- 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  205 

posal.  How  to  dispense  this  grand  offering  of  a  charitable 
people,  so  as  to  best  meet  the  object  of  the  donors,  and  at  the 
same  time  deal  impartially  with  the  afflicted  in  all  the  flooded 
sections,  required  a  close  inspection  and  a  mature  judgment. 
They  went  about  their  work  very  deliberately,  and  resolved 
not  to  distribute  any  money  till  the  wants  of  all  sections  had 
been  considered.  Meanwhile  the  fund  at  their  command  was 
growing  daily,  and  on  the  day  of  their  start  the  showing  for 
Philadelphia  alone  was  $945,244,  besides  the  trains  of  provi- 
sions and  clothing  already  shipped. 

One  fortunate  thing  about  the  Johnstown  situation,  was  that 
so  many  of  its  people  were  members  of  local  insurance  and 
fraternal  societies.  This  secured  for  them  a  direct  .relief, 
which  was  both  timely  and  substantial,  and  gave  a  pleasing 
illustration  of  the  value  of  these  humanitarian  organizations 
in  time  of  emergency. 

On  June  18,  the  Johnstown  Councilmen  met  for  the  first 
time  since  the  flood  to  co-operate  with  General  Hastings  in  his 
work  of  cleansing  an<t  restoring.  It  was  a  most  solemn  and 
in  many  respects  an  extraordinary  meeting,  as  they  looked  out 
on  a  city  with  three-fourths  of  its  houses  and  33  per  cent  of  its 
inhabitants  gone.  Three  of  their  small  membership  were  not 
present.  Their  city  treasurer  had  joined  the  majority  in  com- 
pany with  their  clerk.  Tears  and  silence  characterized  the 
early  part  of  the  proceedings.  Members  grasped  each  other's 
hands  and  had  nothing  to  say.  The  municipal  building  has 
gone.  The  streets,  market-houses,  city  prison,  public  buildings 
— even  their  city  was  gone,  and  their  very  meeting  appeared 
to  be  a  mockery  and  a  work  of  superrogation.  General  Hast- 


206  THE  J  OHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD. 

ings  came  in,  and  in  a  voice  of  almost  womanly  tenderness 
urged  upon  them  the  work  of  manly  action  and  judgment. 
He  offered  them  all  that  himself  and  the  State  could  do.  He 
told  them  that  he  was  ready  to  put  carpenters  and  workmen  at 
work  the  next  morning  upon  100  business  buildings  upon  the 
public  square  and  would  help  every  man  who  had  a  lot  to 
erect  upon  it  a  substantial  house  and  furnish  it. 

They  granted  their  square  for  18  months  for  building  pur- 
poses, and  thoroughly  reorganized  their  body  and  the  munic- 
ipal government.  The  announcement  was  made  that  the  Relief 
Committee  on  the  part  of  the  State  was  already  on  its  way 
thither  from  Williamsport  and  would  arrive  on  the  19th.  The 
debris  still  continued  to  give  up  its  dead,  eighteen  bodies 
having  been  found,  most  of  them  in  the  gorge  at  the  Pennsyl- 
vania bridge.  In  the  evening  the  body  of  a  young  lady,  richly 
attired  in  a  dark  blue  dress  was  taken  out  of  the  river  near  the 
gorge.  The  ears  held  handsome  earrings ;  a  gold  watch  was 
in  the  watch  fob  of  the  dress ;  three  handsome  gold  rings  were 
on  her  fingers,  and  other  evidences  of  wealth  and  breeding  were 
not  wanting.  It  was  thought  to  be  the  body  of  Miss  Jennie 
Poulson  of  Pittsburgh,  who  was  drowned  from  the  Pennsyl- 
vania train  in  company  with  Miss  Bryan,  of  Philadelphia,  on 
the  day  of  the  flood. 

THE   COMMISSION  AT    HAND. 

On  June  19,  the  State  Relief  Committee  or  Commission,  saw 
the  whole  of  the  devastated  valley.  At  8  o'clock  A.  M.,  the 
party  came  out  of  their  car  and  looked  up  the  South  Fork, 
where  the  water  from  the  dam  first  struck  the  valley.  Then 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  207 

they  re-entered  their  car  and  started  for  the  run  down  the 
valley. 

When  Conemaugh  was  reached  at  10  o'clock  the  committee 
got  the  first  glimpse  of  where  hundreds  of  houses  had  been 
washed  away.  There  was  nothing  to  indicate  that  houses  ever 
stood  there.  It  was  a  dead  flat,  covered  with  rocks  and  peb- 
bles, with  a  locomotive,  baggage  and  freight  cars  buried  in  it. 
This  track  of  waste  was  followed  up  to  the  stone  railroad 
bridge,  when  the  train  stopped.  Here  again  the  party  alighted 
to  see  the  work  of  removing  the  debris. 

"  This  is  excellent,  this  is  excellent,"  said  Gov.  Beaver  to 
General  Hastings.  "  You  have  done  great  work.  I  would  not 
recognize  this  as  the  same  place  that  I  visited  ten  days  ago." 

The  commissioners  returned  to  the  station.  Gov.  Beaver, 
Francis  B.  Reeves,  Robert  C.  Ogden,  Judge  Cummin,  General 
Hastings  and  Colonel  Douglass,  chief  engineer,  took  horses 
and  rode  for  two  hours  through  the  devastated  boroughs. 
Johnstown,  Conemaugh,  "Woodvale,  Millville,  Cambria  were 
all  visited.  Far  up  Stony  Creek  Gov.  Beaver  saw  the  ban- 
ners of  the  Red  Cross  flying  from  their  tents,  and  lie  invited 
the  gentlemen  with  him  to  call  on  Miss  Barton.  He  intro- 
duced them  to  her  in  person,  and  warmly  congratulated  her 
upon  the  magnitude  of  her  work  and  the  rare  judgment  she 
had  exercised  in  its  performance. 

The  party  next  stopped  at  the  head-quarters  of  the  State 
Board  of  Health  and  consulted  with  Dr.  Lee  and  his  assist- 
ants concerning  the  health  of  the  city  and  its  environs,  and 
about  the  means  of  sanitation  in  use. 

Cyrus  Elder,  James  McMillan  and  Mr.  Moxham,  represent- 


208  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD, 

•ng  the  citizens  of  Johnstown,  joined  the  commissioners  and 
laid  before  them  their  immediate  needs.  At  the  conclusion  of 
this  conference  the  commission  organized  by  electing  Gov. 
Beaver  chairman.  One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  Board  after  its 
organization,  was  to  authorize  Gov.  Beaver  to  purchase  500 
portable  houses,  erect  them  and  place  in  them  such  furniture 
as  is  absolutely  necessary. 

The  commission  next  adopted  a  resolution  which  declared 
that  all  the  money  which  has  been  subscribed,  all  that  is  in 
sight  and  all  that  will  be  subscribed  will  not  be  enough 

o  o 

adequately  to  relieve  the  suffering  and  restore  to  comfortable 
homes  the  victims  of  the  flood.  In  a  word,  the  commission 
can  not,  in  its  opinion,  receive  too  much  money.  Mayor  Fit- 
ler  was  appointed  as  the  sub-committee  for  Philadelphia  and 
Mr.  Marvin  for  Pittsburg.  General  Hastings  was  authorized 
to  carry  out  the  plans  of  erecting  small  shops  in  the  public 
squares  for  the  business  men.  The  commissioners  could  not 
speak  too  highly  of  General  Hastings  and  the  work  he  had 
done  here.  They  are  amazed  at  the  wonderful  progress  he 
had  made. 

June  20,  was  an  eventful  day  in  the  flooded  district,  on 
account  of  dissatisfaction  and  a  threatened  strike  among  the 
workmen.  But  the  iusubordinates  were  paid  off  and  summarily 
dismissed  by  General  Hastings,  and  quiet  was  speedily  restored. 
June  21,  was  the  most  stirring  business  day  since  the  flood.  It 
was  pay  day  at  the  Cambria  Iron  Works  and  at  the  Gautier 
Wire  Works.  Checks  for  nearly  $100,000  were  distributed  to 
the  workingmen  by  these  two  companies.  Many  hundreds  of 
jnen  were  missing  from  the  pay-rolls  of  both  companies,  and  their 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0 OD.  209 

_<mey  was  drawn  by  their  wives  or  legal  representatives.  Many 
were  there  for  the  first  time  since  the  night  of  the  horror.  It 
was  interesting  to  note  how  these  rough  but  tender  hearted  men 
softened  their  inquiries  about  families  and  friends. 

"Why,  how  are  you  Jack?"  said  a  hard-fisted  laborer  as  he 
grasped  the  hand  of  a  friend  in  the  line  at  the  Cambria  win- 
doAV.  "I  thought  you  had  gone  down.  Are  your  folks  all 
well?"  , 

"Oh,  yes,  they're  all  right.     We  all  came  through." 

This  was  only  one  of  the  hundred  questions  at  the  Cambria 
and  the  Gautier  offices.  They  were  all  of  a  similar  character. 
The  officers  of  both  companies,  who  at  first  thought  the  money 
to  pay  the  workingmen  had  been  lost,  announced  that  the  cash 
had  been  saved.  It  was  placed  in  the  First  National  Bank 
just  before  the  flood.  Over  $200,000  were  on  deposit  there. 

A  correspondent  thus  reflects  the  situation  on  the  21st  of 
June : — "  The  effect  of  the  flood  is  beginning  to  tell  sorely 
upon  outlying  towns.  For  a  time  aid  from  the  surrounding 
agricultural  districts  has  been  given  them,  but  there  are  many 
in  need.  To-day  the  burgess  and  several  of  the  leading  citi- 
zens of  South  Fork  sent  word  to  General  Hastings  that  they 
were  in  need  of  food  and  clothing.  He  at  once  sent  an  aid 
with  abundance  of  both  to  the  town,  and  will  continue  to 
supply  it  and  other  towns  till  assistance  shall  no  longer  be 
needed. 

One  hundred  portable  houses  will  be  here  to-morrow  morn- 
ing, and  scores  of  carpenters,  under  the  direction  of  W.  V. 
Hughes,  of  Pittsburg,  master  carpenter,  will  immediately  go  to 
work  placing  them  on  their  foundations.  Monday  the  scores 


210  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL 0 OD. 

of  carpenters  will  be  increased  to  hundreds,  and  the  utmost 
expedition  will  be  used  iii  order  to  induce  people  to  domesti- 
cate themselves  and  become  civil  factors  again.  The  plan  of 
erection  is  simplicity  itself.  The  houses  will  arrive  on  cars 
at  the  Johnstown  station.  The  cars  will  be  run  onto  sidings 
and  from  them  the  houses  will  be  loaded  into  huge  wagons, 
which  will  take  them  to  the  sites  selected  for  them.  The 
matter  of  sites  has  been  already  largely  arranged  for  by  the 
Citizens'  Committee,  which  has  been  very  busy  for  several 
days  in  receiving  and  passing  upon  applications,  and  the 
necessity  of  discrimination  in  the  matter  of  awards  has  been 
exhaustively  considered. 

The  houses  will  be  erected  after  the  most  approved  sanitary 
principles.  Dr.  Lee,  of  the  State  Board  of  Health,  was 
directed  by  General  Hastings  to  look  into  this  matter,  and  he 
has  been  doing  it.  He  summarizes  his  recommendations  as 
follows  • 

The  State  Board  of  Health  considers  it  inexpedient,  from  a 
sanitary  point  of  view,  to  place  these  houses  in  any  of  the 
following  districts  at  the  present  time :  The  flooded  districts 
of  Johnstown,  including  Homers  town  and  Conemaugh  bor- 
ough ;  Kernville,  in  the  sections  bounded  as  follows :  both 
sides  of  Morris  street  from  its  origin  at  Cobaugh's  to  South 

•» 

Street,  out  South  to  Napoleon,  down  Napoleon  to  Dibert,  out 
Dibert  to  foot  of  hill,  along  hill  to  river,  and  along  river  to 
place  of  starting ;  "VVoodvale,  between  the  tracts  and  the  hill- 
side on  the  North ;  East  Conemaugh,  the  immediate  neigh- 
borhood of  the  railroad  and  the  camp  of  the  railroad  em- 
ployees ;  districts  below  the  stone  bridge.  Our  inspectors  for 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  211 

«ne3e  districts  have  not  reported  on  this  subject,  but  as  soon  as 
they  do  so  the  Board  will  furnish  the  desired  information.  It 
will  be  understood  that  these  recommendations  refer  to  the 
present  time,  and  that  in  the  course  of  a  week  the  situation 
at  certain  points  may  be  materially  altered. 

As  soon  as  the  houses  are  in  shape  for  their  purposes  a 
committee  appointed  by  Council  will  take  charge  of  them  and 
by  lot  distribute  them  among  the  business  men  who  wish  to 
re-establish  themselves  and  to  grow  up  again  with  the  revivi- 
fied city.  It  has  already  developed  that  not  a  few  men  with 
means  from  other  points  are  willing  to  invest  their  money  in 
Johnstown,  and  their  applications  must  be  considered  with 
the  others.  This  phase  of  things  has  been  a  source  of  great 
pride  and  comfort  to  the  old  residents.  Johnstown  has  been 
prosperous,  and  the  prosperity  is  thought  to  be  only  an  inti- 
mation of  what  its  future  will  be. 

The  bodies  of  twenty-seven  persons  were  taken  from 
various  places  in  the  wreck  by  the  workingmen  to-day.  In 
a  cellar  of  a  house  near  the  Presbyterian  Church  a  family  of 
six  persons  was  discovered,  the  husband  and  wife  clasped  in 
each  other's  arms  and  the  little  ones  lying  near  them.  All 
were  too  much  decomposed  to  be  identified. 

A  BANK  OPEN. 

The  opening  of  the  First  National  Bank  on  the  morning  of 
June  22d,  with  imposing  stacks  of  "  coin  of  the  realm  "  on 
every  change  counter  was  the  most  substantial  symptom  of 
business  resumption  of  all  that  had  appeared  since  the  flood. 
James  McMillan,  the  veteran  president  of  the  institution,  the 


212  THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD. 

man  who  gave  the  order  to  start  up  the  Cambria  Iron  Works, 
the  man  who  gave  his  credit,  his  influence  and  his  personal 
efforts  to  carry  out  schemes  projected  for  the  relief  of  his  de- 
vastated city,  was  behind  the  counter  and  narrowly  scanned 
the  faces  of  the  early  callers.  Some  presented  checks  for  the 
money  they  had  left  in  the  bank  before  the  flood,  and  others 
had  plethoric  passbooks  and  instructed  the  receiving  teller  to 
place  the  contents  to  their  credit.  This  class  predominated, 
and  soon  Mr.  McMillan  withdrew  to  his  little  office  satisfied 
that  his  bank  and  himself  were  still  at  par  in  Johnstown.  It 
was  a  moment  of  supreme  pleasure  to  the  septuagenarian  and 
he  enjoyed  it  to  the  frill  for  just  one  minute.  He  had 
promised  his  people  that  they  should  have  money  at  home  and 
credit  abroad  and  he  had  literally  kept  his  word.  He 
epitomized  the  history  of  the  flood  and  his  relation  to  it  in 
these  words : 

We  took  in  more  money  to-day  in  the  bank  than  we  paid 
out.  We  will  be  making  rails  in  the  Cambria  next  Monday. 
We  have  two  furnaces  in  blast  there  now  and  will  blow  in 
four  more  next  week.  I  tell  you  in  less  than  five  years 
hence  Johnstown  will  be  a  greater,  more  populous  and  more 
prominent  city  than  she  ever  was. 

Mr.  McMillan's  ideas  were  those  of  his  fellow  citizens. 
His  confidence  became  contagious,  and  when  the  one  hundred 
business  buildings  shall  have  been  erected  on  the  public 
square  there  will  be  a  regular  Oklahoma  scramble  for  them. 
In  the  meantime  those  who  had  credit  and  were  anxious  to  begin 
in  an  absolutely  independent  manner  Were  hustling  the  State 
Authorities  to  hasten  the  clearing  out  of  their  streets  and 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  213 

their  cellars  in  order  that  they  might  begin  the  erection  of  their 
own  buildings  after  their  own  ideas.  These  enterprising  people 
were  not  scarce,  and  their  anxiety  to  do  business  on  their  own 
behalf  General  Hastings  regarded  as  the  most  encouraging 
incident  of  his  residence  there.  Of  course,  outside  aid  in  the 
matters  of  food  and  clothing  was  still  indispensable  and 
should  continue  until  houses  and  employment  have  become 
general  and  stores  and  groceries  replace  the  relief  warehouses 
and  commissaries. 

ANOTHER  SABBATH. 

The  bright  Sabbath  of  June  23  broke  on  the  devastated' 
valley  like  a  smile.  The  sun  and  breeze  quickly  evaporated 
the  moisture  from  the  freshly  cleansed  surfaces,  and  the  eye 
which  had  been  used  to  desolation  only  caught  sight  of  the 
first  rows  of  those  unique  Avooden  homes  which  noted  the  be- 
ginning of  permanent  residence  upon  the  water-swept  town 
site  at  Johnstown.  These  dwellings  are  thus  described  by  the 
chairman  of  the  Purchasing  Committee  in  a  letter  to  the 
chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Finance : — "  It  was  not  until 
yesterday  that  I  became  aware  of  the  size  and  appearance  ot 
the  one  hundred  houses  which  we  have  ordered  sent  to  you  at 
Johnstown.  These  houses  are  portable  and  fold  up  like  the 
cover  of  a  book.  They  are  painted  inside  and  out  and 
present  a  very  neat  appearance.  They  are  one  story  high 
and  the  floor  is  ten  by  twenty.  You  will  find  that  they  can 
be  very  quickly  set  up.  We  expect  that  twenty-four  of  these 
houses  will  arrive  in  Johnstown  not  later  than  Sunday  morn- 
ing. We  h*"'0  also  ordered  furniture  for  the  twenty-four 


2 1 4  THE  JOHNS 'TO  WN  FL  0  OD. 

houses.  It  may  »ot  arrive  in  Johnstown  until  Tuesday,  as 
some  of  the  articles  that  we  wanted  were  not  here  in  the 
quantity  we  required.  However,  the  most  important  articles, 
the  mattresses,  bedclothing,  stoves,  stove  furniture  and  the 
chairs,  will  be  there  possibly  to-morrow.  I  have  had  a  list  of 
the  articles  intended  for  each  house  prepared  by  my  assistant, 
Mr.  Dilworth,  and  it  will  be  forwarded  to  you  to-night.  In 
addition  to  the  articles  enumerated  Ave  were  prepared  to 
furnish  each  house  with  a  barrel  of  flour,  if  you  think  it  is 
desirable  and  would  be  what  you  recommended.  The  party 
who  furnished  these  houses  left  Pittsburg  last  night  to  see 
Governor  Beaver  in  Harrisburg  to-day.  I  think  that  inside 
of  two  weeks  you  will  have  several  hundred  houses  erected  in 
Johnstown  and  fully  furnished.  This  is  the  outfit  that  will 
go  along  with  each  house  : 

Five  chairs,  one  small  rocker,  one  pair  red  blankets,  one 
white  blanket,  two  towels,  eight  sheets,  one  cooking  stove,  one 
skillet,  two  bake  pans,  one  iron  pot,  one  tea  kettle,  three 
joints  of  pipe,  six  knives  and  forks,  six  teaspoons,  three 
tablespoons,  six  cups,  six  saucers,  six  plates,  one  cream 
pitcher,  one  two-quart  pitcher,  two  one-and-one-half  pint 
bowls,  two  bedsteads,  one  table  (with  knives),  two  spring  beds 
(all  metal),  two  husk  and  cotton  mattresses,  four  husk  pillows. 

All  the  denominations  held  services,  the  saloons  were 
closed,  work  was  suspended,  in  so  far  as  it  could  be,  and  there 
was  more  of  a  Sabbath  air  in  the  valley  than  since  the 
disaster. 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  OOD.  215 

THE   RED    CROSS   RELIEF. 

After  the  distributing  of  relief  to  those  immediately  in  need, 
it  became  a  special  object  of  this  magnificent  charity  to  stand 
the  stricken  people  on  their  feet  again,  and  revive  in  them  that 
spirit  of  independence  and  sacrifice  that  in  a  less  brave,  and 
enterprising  community  would  have  been  eternally  submerged, 
and  to  get  them  all  at  work  again  and  in  homes  of  their 
own. 

In  connection  with  this  work,  Miss  Barton  said : — "  It  pains 
and  annoys  me  to  read  the  baseless  stories  concerning  the 
condition  of  these  people  that  are  sent  out  to  some  of  the 
influential  papers  of  this  country,  and  most  of  theaa  are  to  the 
effect  that  there  is  more  food  and  more  clothing  coming  here 
than  is  needed.  There  can  not  be  too  much  good  food  and 
respectable  clothing  sent  here.  It  is  all  needed,  and  it  is 
needed  now,  and  will  be  needed  for  weeks  to  come.  It  must 
not  be  forgotten  that  there  is  nothing  left  here.  Recuperation 
will  be  gradual,  and  it  must  be  fostered.  Men  may  begin  on 
nothing  and  make  fortunes,  but  a  whole  community  can  not 
begin  on  nothing,  with  empty  stomachs  and  bare  backs,  and 
sustain  itself  unaided.  Food  and  clothing  are  therefore  the 
prime  requisites,  and  the  well-disposed  people  of  this  country 
must  take  hold  of  this  fact.  I  am  delayed  daily  with  letters 
from  all  parts  of  the  country  asking  if  assistance  is  still  needed. 
People  tell  mo  they  have  the  things  we  want  boxed  up  and 
have  been  deterred  from  sending  them  because  of  these  mis- 
leading report*  Johnstown  is  still  leaning  on  the  kindly  arm 
of  her  country  5  sympathy,  and  it  must  continue  to  be  sub- 


216  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0 OD. 

stantial  and  spontaneous  for  weeks  to  come.  I  wish  that  what 
clothing  that  may  come  may  be  of  the  better  class.  Let  the 
giving  continue,  and  let  no  one  grow  weary  of  it,  because  there 
is  still  a  great  field  for  charity  here." 

At  this  date  there  has  been  but  little  "diminution  in  the 
number  of  requisitions  on  the  relief  commissions.  As  soon  as 
they  are  open  in  the  morning  lines  of  people,  numbering 
several  hundred,  file  past  the  distributing  doors,  present  their 
orders  and  receive  what  they  call  for  either  in  clothing  or 
food.  It  is  an  animated,  interesting  scene  a-t  any  time.  The 
noisy,  clamorous  people  are  readily  distinguished  as  those 
•who  have  lost  very  little  and  are  trying  to  make  the  most  of 
their  opportunities.  The  other  class  is  quiet  and  unobtrusive, 
and  without  murmuring  or  remonstrating  take  what  is  given 
them. 

The  commissary  scheme  is  doing  all  that  can  be  done  for 
both  classes ;  General  Hastings  has  placed  the  posts  in  charge 
of  the  very  best  officers  of  the  National  Guard,  and  all  are  at 
work  night  and  day.  It  would  require  a  delay  in  the  arrival 
of  supply  trains  of  from  three  to  six  days  to  derange  the 
present  system  of  distributing  food,  and  this  can  not  happen, 
as  provision  trains  have  the  right  of  way  over  all  others  and 
there  are  posts  at  present  at  Conemaugh,  Cambria,  Morrell- 
ville  and  Johnstown.  These  will  be  kept  up  until  they  are 
no  longer  required.  They  are  each  officered  by  a  member  of 
the  National  Guard,  who  is  assisted  by  a  committee  of  citizens 
whose  duty  it  is  to  identify  the  applicants  and  pass  upon  their 
applications.  It  is  becoming  more  systematic  each  day,  and 
by  next  week  imposition  will  be  impracticable. 


THE  JOHNSTOWN  FLOOD.  217 

Time  has  located  the  final  work  of  recovery  from  one  of 
the  greatest  of  modern  disasters  in  three  grand  agencies.  The 
first  of  all  is  the  heart,  head  and  hands  of  the  stricken  people 
themselves.  The  second  is  the  wonderful  machinery  which 
humanity  has  placed  on  the  ground  in  the  shape  of  organized 
Commissions,  disciplined  soldiery,  skilled  dispensation  of 
necessities,  and  obedient  corps  of  workmen.  The  last  is  that 
munificent  gift  of  the  charitable  world  in  the  form  of  nearly 
two  millions  of  money,  whose  direction  has  been  placed  under 
a  Commission  of  the  State.  It  has  been  so  composed  that 
the  people  who  gave  so  freely  and  nobly  for  the  relief  of  the 
sufferers  from  the  recent  floods  and  disasters  in  this  State  may 
rest  with  entire  confidence  that  the  immense  fund  will  be  most 
carefully,  judiciously  and  conscientiously  expended. 

A  very  large  portion  of  the  money  raised  in  other  States 
was  placed  absolutely  at  the  disposal  of  the  Governor,  but  he 
determined,  and  very  naturally,  that  he  would  not  individually 
assume  the  responsibility  of  the  application.  He  decided  to 
create  a  Commission  of  eminent  citizens  for  that  purpose,  and 
as  it  was  plain  that  greater  unity,  efficiency  and  economy 
could  be  secured  if  all  the  money  were  applied  through  one 
channel,  there  came  to  be  universal  concurrence  in  the  plan 
of  the  Commission. 

Tt  has  already  made  one  apportionment  of  the  funds  among 
the  scourged  districts.  Thus  all  have  helped  in  dire  need 
and  all  encouraged.  Other  apportionments  will  follow,  so 
that  in  the  end  all  will  get  just  what  share  they  should  have, 
and  the  aims  of  charity  will  be  fully  met.  Thus  far  the  whole 
of  the  work  has  been  most  intelligently  and  systematically 


218  THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FL  0  OD. 

conducted.  It  involves  relief  from  immediate  want  and  des- 
titution and  such  further  aid  as  may  be  needed  to  enable  the 
sufferers  to  take  care  of  themselves  and  cease  to  be  dependent 
on  charity.  It  can  not  undertake  to  repair  losses.  It  is  a 
work  which  will  necessarily  continue  for  a  long  time,  and  the 
people  may  feel  full  assurance  that  in  the  hands  of  the  Com- 
mission, it  will  be  faithfully  and  wisely  conducted. 


CHAPTER  XVIV. 

FLOODS   OF   HISTORY. 

The  terrible  flood  in  the  Conemaugh  Valley  will  be  chroni- 
cled by  the  historian  as  one  of  the  most  disastrous  in  the  world's 
records  of  such  calamities.  Now  that  the  first  feeling  of 
horror  in  connection  with  the  Pennsylvania  deluge  has  in  a 
measure  subsided,  and  men  can  begin  calmly  to  measure  its 
extent,  one  of  the  first  thoughts  which  will  arise  in  the  minds 
of  many  is  one  of  comparison.  Will  it  not  rank  among  the 
worst  in  the  history  of  the  world  ?  Where  has  a  flood  wrought 
greater  havoc  ?  How  many  have  been  more  disastrous  ?  „ 

The  fingers  of  one  hand  will  suffice  to  count  the  floods  in 
history  which  have  been  accompanied  by  a  loss  of  life  as  great 
or  greater  than  the  one  in  Western  Pennsylvania.  In  this 
Nineteenth  Century  it  is  hard  to  comprehend  the  extent  01 
such  a  disaster ;  it  seems  irreconcilable  with  the  civilization 
and  progress  of  the  age.  '  The  fact  that  there  have  been  very 
few  as  terrible  floods  in  the  whole  gamut  of  history  will  aid  in 
appreciating  its  horrors.  What  have  these  few  been  ?  This 
is  the  short  list : 

At  Dort,  in  Holland,  seventy-two  villages  and  over  100,000 
people  were  destroyed  on  Apri?  17.  1421. 

At  a  general  inundation  of  nearly  the  whole  of  Holland  in 
1530,  upward  of  400,000  people  lost  their  lives. 

In  Catalonia,  in  1617,  50,000  persons  perished  by  flood. 
(219) 


220  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD. 

Six  thousand  perished  by  the  floods  in  Silesia  in  1813,  and 
4000  in  Poland  in  the  same  year. 

The  loss  of  life  during  the  recent  floods  in  Austria-Hungary 
and  in  China  have  never  been  fully  reckoned,  and  though 
100,000  persons  are  said  to  have  perished  in  the  Chinese 
inundations,  the  figures  are  not  regarded  as  trustworthy. 
These  are  the  only  floods  on  record  where  the  loss  of  human 
life  has  been  estimated  at  over  5000.  The  list  of  smaller 
similar  disasters  is  almost  an  endless  one. 

IN    HOLLAND   AND   CHINA. 

Holland,  the  little  lowland  country  "redeemed  from  the 
seas,"  has  suffered  worst,  from  the  nature  of  its  situation. 
Protected,  as  it  is,  by  dikes,  which  separate  the  land  from  the 
water  by  artificial  means,  a  constant  vigilance  has  been  required 
of  its  people  to  prevent  the  ocean  from  claiming  its  own.  In 
both  the  deluges  of  1421  and  1530  the  immediate  cause  was 
a  breaking  down  of  the  dikes.  The  records  of  both  are  meagre, 
although  the  mere  lists  of  the  drowned  suffice  to  show  how 
awful  the  havoc  must  have  been.  The  inundation  at  Dort 
began  at  Dordrecht,  where  a  heavy  storm  caused  the  dikes  at 
that  point  to  give  way.  In  that  territory  alone  10,000  people 
were  overwhelmed  and  perished,  while  the  ravages  of  the  sea 
extended,  and  over  100,000  persons  were  killed  around  Dullart, 
in  Friesland  and  in  Zealand.  In  the  last  two  provinces  up- 
ward of  300  villages  were  overflowed,  and,  according  to  a  Dutch 
historian,  the  tops  of  their  steeple.s  and  towns  were  for  centuries 
after  to  be  seen  rising  out  of  the  water. 

The  immense  body  of  water  known  as  the  Zuyder  Zee  was 


THE  JOHNS  TO  WN  FL  0  OD.  221 

formed  by  this  inundation.  Reclaimed  by  the  ocean,  it  was 
never  recaptured  by  the  Hollanders.  Although  a  fertile  country 
before  that  time,  it  has  ever  since  been  the  "  Zee."  The  sub- 
sequent inundation  of  1530  was  the  most  frightful  on  record. 
It  nearly  annihilated  the  Netherlands,  and  only  to  the  indomi- 
table pluck  and  industry  which  have  ever  characterized  the 
inhabitants  of  that  country  was  its  subsequent  recovery  due. 

In  1108  Flanders  was  inundated  by  the  sea.  The  submerged 
districts  comprised  an  enormous  area,  and  the  harbor  and 
town  of  Ostend  were  completely  covered  by  water.  The  present 
city  was  built  above  a  league  from  the  channel  where  the  old 
one  still  lies  beneath  the  waves. 

An  awful  inundation  occurred  at  Dantzig  on  April  9, 1 829, 
occasioned  by  the  Vistula  breaking  through  some  of  its  dikes. 
Numerous  lives  were  lost,  and,  the  records  state,  4000  houses 
and  10,000  head  of  cattle  were  destroyed. 

A  large  part  of  Zealand  was  overflowed  in  1717,  and  1300 
of  the  inhabitants  were  lost  in  the  floods.  Hamburg,  while 
her  citizens  with  but  few  exceptions  were  saved,  sustained  an 
almost  incalculable  loss  to  property.  The  same  city  was  again 
half  flooded  on  January  1,  1855,  and  enormous  damage 
suftereu. 

In  the  Silesian  flood  spoken  of  above  the  ruin  of  the  French 
army  under  MacDonald,  which  was  in  that  country  at  the 
time,  was  materially  accelerated  by  the  forces  of  nature. 

One  of  the  worst  floods  Germany  ever  had  occurred  in  March, 
1816 ;  119  villages  were  laid  under  water  and  a  great  loss  of 
life  and  property  followed  the  inundation. 


222  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  GOD. 

The  floods  in  China  and  that  portion  of  the  Eastern  Hemi- 
sphere, from  time  immemorial  peculiarly  subject  to  such 
calamities,  have  always  entailed  losses  about  which  little  has 
been  known.  No  definite  statistics  of  loss  of  life  and  damages 
have  ever  been  obtainable.  In  recent  years  there  have  been 
floods  there  which  are  known  to  have  been  very  disastrous,  but 
that  is  practically  all  that  can  be  said.  In  October,  1833, 
occurred  one  of  the  worst  floods  in  the  empire.  Ten  thousand 
houses  were  swept  away  and  1000  persons  perished  in  Canton 
alone,  while  equal  or  perhaps  greater  calamity  was  produced 
in  other  sections  of  the  country. 

At  Vienna  the  dwellings  of  50,000  inhabitants  Avere  laid 
under  water  in  February,  1830. 

Two  thousand  persons  perished  in  Navarre  in  September, 
1787,  from  torrents  from  the  mountains  produced  by  exces- 
sive rains. 

The  beautiful  Danube  of  poetry  and  song  has,  on  numer- 
ous occasions,  risen  in  its  might,  and  brought  disaster  and  dis- 
tress to  the  inhabitants  of  the  countries  through  which  it 
winds.  Pesth,  near  Presburg,  suffered  to  an  enormous  extent 
from  its  overflow  in  April,  1811.  Twenty-four  villages  were 
swept  away,  and  a  large  number  of  their  inhabitants  perished. 

On  the  occasion  of  another  overflow  of  this  river,  on  Sep- 
tember 14,  1813,  a  Turkish  corps  of  2000  men,  who  were  en- 
camped on  a  small  island  near  Widdin,  were  surprised  and 
met  instant  death  to  a  man. 

A  catastrophe,  which  in  some  respects  brings  to  mind  that 
at  Johnstown,  occurred  in  Spain  in  1802.  Lorca,  a  city  in 


THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD.  223 

Murcia,  was  overwhelmed  by  the  bursting  of  a  reservoir,  and 
upwards  of  1000  people  were  destroyed. 


HOW  FRANCE  HAS  SUFFERED. 

France  has  on  numerous  occasions  suffered  severely  from 
floods.  Its  rivers  have  overflowed  their  banks  at  intervals  for 
centuries  back,  causing  great  loss  of  life  and  damage  to 
property.  The  Loire  flooded  the  centre  and  Southwest  of 
France  by  an  unprecedented  rise  in  October,  1846,  and,  while 
the  people  succeeded  in  escaping  to  a  great  extent,  damages 
aggregating  over  $20,000,000  were  sustained.  Ten  years  later 
the  South  of  France  was  again  subjected  to  an  inundation  and 
an  immense  loss  sustained. 

A  large  part  of  Toulouse  was  destroyed  by  a  rising  of  the 
Garonne  in  June,  1875.  So  sudden  and  disastrous  was  the 
flood  that  the  inhabitants  were  taken  unawares  and  over  1000 
lost  their  lives. 

Awful  inundations  occurred  in  France  from  October  31  to 
November  4,  1840.  The  Saone  poured  its  waters  into  the 
Rhone,  broke  through  its  banks  and  covered  60,000  acres. 
Lyons  was  almost  entirely  submerged  ;  in  Avignon  100  houses 
were  swept  away,  218  houses  were  carried  away  at  La  Guil- 
lotiere  and  upward  of  300  at  \7oise,  Marseilles  and  Nismes.  It 
was  the  greatest  height  the  Saone  had  attained  for  238  years. 

At  Besseges,  in  the  South  of  France,  a  waterspout  in  1861 
destroyed  the  machinery  of  the  mines  and  sent  a  torrent  over 
the  edge  of  the  pit  like  a  cataract.  The  gas  exploded  and 
hundreds  of  men  and  boys  were  buried  below.  It  was  a 


224  THE  JOHNSTO  WN  FL  0  OD. 

peculiar  casualty,  in  not  having  been  caused  by  any  of  the 
ordinary  occasions  of  floods. 

A  thousand  lives  were  lost  in  Murcia,  Spain,  by  inundations 

in  1879. 

India  has  been  the  scene  of  numerous  floods.  In  186  a 
deluge  overwhelmed  the  fertile  districts  of  Bengal,  killing 
hundreds  and  plunging  the  survivors  into  the  direst  poverty. 
Famine  and  pestilence  followed,  carrying  thousands  away  like 

cattle. 

Italy  has  not  been  exempt  from  the  devastation  of  the  waters. 
On  December  28  and  29,  1870,  Rome  suffered  great  loss.,  and 
in  October,  1872,  the  Northern  portions  of  the  kingdom  were 
Visited  by  great  floods.  There  have  been  innumerable  smaller 
inundations. 

Great  Britain  has  a  long  list  of  inundations.  It  is  recorded 
that  in  the  year  245  the  sea  swept  over  Lincolnshire  and  sub- 
merged thousands  of  acres.  In  the  year  353  over  3000  persons 
were  drowned  in  Cheshire  from  the  same  cause.  Four  hun- 
dred families  were  destroyed  in  Glasgow  in  the  year  738  by  a 
great  flood.  The  coast  of  Kent  was  similarly  afflicted  in  1100, 
and  the  immense  bank  still  known  as  the  Godwin  Sands  was 
formed  by  the  action  of  the  sea, 

While  the  record  as  given  above  is  by  no  means  complete, 
it  will  serve  for  all  purposes  of  comparison.  It  embraces  the 
most  important  disasters  of  the  rushing  waters  on  record,  and 
shows  what  a  destructive  force  the  same  element  has  proven 
which  bubbles  in  noisy  brooks  and  sings  merrily  as  it  courses 
down  the  mountain  sides. 


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